No defense has been more dominant this season than the Minnesota Vikings, which are in their fourth season under Brian Flores. Because of this sustained tenure, veteran players can communicate quickly on the field, countering offenses pre-snap without consulting Flores.

Injuries have affected the offense over five games, but Minnesota's defense has stayed healthy. That has helped maintain consistency in the communication, helping the Vikings stay one step ahead of opposing offenses.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, Kevin Seifert said in ESPN's Week 6 Power Rankings. But when the assignment for each writer was to find one fault in their team's defense, Seifert had to get creative.

"It's not easy to find a negative indicator from a defense that has been the league's best this season, based on NFL Next Gen Stats' expected point average," Seifert wrote of the Vikings, who were ranked No. 6 in the power rankings. "But because the Vikings have been almost entirely healthy, their depth at multiple positions is untested. In fact, eight defensive players have been on the field for at least 80% of the snaps. That doesn't mean the backups would falter in more prominent roles. It's just hard to judge based on game reps."

Although it's admittedly a nitpicked answer, Seifert has a point. Minnesota's offense has struggled in part because of injuries to Kyler Murray, Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Jordan Mason, Christian Darrisaw, T.J. Hockenson, and Donovan Jackson. That has compounded growing pains in a renovated offense that Frank Smith helped influence during his time as Dolphins offensive coordinator over the past four seasons.

But injuries are unfortunately a part of the NFL, and while some teams avoid them better than others, it's almost impossible to get through the season unscathed. Blake Cashman has been one of the defense's best players through five games, but he still hasn't played all 17 as he enters his ninth season in the league. He also wears the "green dot" on defense, meaning he's the one who receives and relays Flores' play calls.

That's not to say Cashman is likely to be injured, but it does show how quickly the entire stream of communication could be disrupted by one injury. He also brings a level of physicality and versatility that is hard to replace, registering a team-high 21 stops, per PFF, and 12 pressures, which is fourth on the team.

Right now, the Vikings' defense is hitting on all cylinders. At some point, they may have to shuffle and adapt when their depth is tested.

And if that's the biggest flaw in his defense over five games, Flores may be just fine with it.