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The #Saints are adding a big-time name on their defensive staff, as sources say they’ll hire former #Seahawks DC and #Cowboys assistant Kris Richard as their new secondary coach. He fills the spot previously held by Aaron Glenn in Dennis Allen’s defense.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 2, 2021
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the New Orleans Saints have chosen their next defensive backs coach: Kris Richard, formerly of the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys. Richard came up with Seahawks coach Pete Carroll at USC before making the jump with him to the NFL, working as one of the architects of the famed “Legion of Boom” defenses in the mid-2010’s.
Richard worked as Seahawks defensive coordinator from 2015 to 2017 before leaving for the Cowboys, where he took on a number of titles: passing game coordinator, defensive backs coach, and defensive play caller. He wasn’t retained for Mike McCarthy’s staff after Dallas fired longtime head coach Jason Garrett after the 2019 season; Richard was selective in picking his next job after a year away from football amid the COVID-19 pandemic. He was a rising star before taking a one-year sabbatical, having interviewed for five different head coaching jobs in recent years
It’s a big get for the Saints, who lost their previous secondary coach Aaron Glenn to the Detroit Lions (where he’s the defensive coordinator for first-year head coach Dan Campbell, former Saints tight ends coach). Richard has a popular reputation with his former players and, like Glenn, is a former player himself. He’ll also get the opportunity to coach against both of his former teams in 2021, with the Saints hosting the Cowboys in the Superdome while visiting the Seahawks for a road game.
So that’s a huge addition to the Saints coaching staff. It remains to be seen how they’ll replace their losses in other areas, but this is a great start.
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