The New Orleans Saints will be hiring their second head coach in four years after firing Dennis Allen and tasking Darren Rizzi with filling in as the interim, but which candidates stand out? Rumors suggest Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders could intrigue the Saints, but someone with NFL experience would be more their style.
And there are two obvious names to watch, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Schefter shared what he’s hearing and expecting leading up to Monday night’s kickoff with the Green Bay Packers.
“They are going to heat up their coaching search towards the end of this season,” Schefter began. “One of the candidates expected to be square on their radar will be the Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn who has coached in New Orleans, has a history with the franchise, the organization knows him well. I also expect the organization to have some level of interest in the former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel. And of course there will be other names.”
Both Glenn and Vrabel have backgrounds coaching defense, so you have to wonder what their plan for getting the New Orleans offense back on track would be. It’s just guesswork, but at this early stage Schefter suggests Derek Carr would remain central to that vision given the team’s complicated salary cap situation.
“And because this team is so strapped against the cap, Derek Carr is in line to be back next year. They don’t have a lot of flexibility, he makes the most sense, and it certainly looks like he could be back next season even though he is inactive tonight.”
The 2025 salary cap hasn’t been set, but the Saints will be paying more than $48.4 million in dead money (most in the NFL, right now) after parting ways with Marshon Lattimore, Michael Thomas, and Jameis Winston. Cutting or trading Carr would double that number, and it’d be a tough ask for any coach to rebuild the roster with $100 million earmarked for players not on the roster.
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This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: ESPN’s Adam Schefter shares new information on Saints’ coaching search
