Tag: coordinator

Dennis Allen says Ronald Curry addressed offense at halftime vs. Jaguars

Dennis Allen says Saints passing game coordinator Ronald Curry addressed the struggling offense at halftime vs. Jaguars

It’s no secret that the New Orleans Saints offense didn’t do enough with the opportunities they were given on Thursday night — especially in the first half, when they managed to score just six points against a couple of Jacksonville Jaguars touchdowns.

They went into halftime facing a steep deficit in a high-stakes situation. The team needed leaders to step up. And Saints head coach Dennis Allen shared a message from passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach Ronald Curry after the break.

“It’s all about execution,” Allen told Amazon Prime Video sideline reporter Kaylee Hartung. “It’s like R.C. said in the locker room to the offense, ‘Let’s go out there and make plays that we’re capable of making.’ That’s what it’s about.”

Now, that doesn’t exactly sound like a big rah-rah speech or fire-and-brimstone sermon, but it’s notable that Curry was so vocally involved. Saints fans have been calling for Curry to have a shot calling plays instead of offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael early and often this season. Curry has been repeatedly spoken of highly by other members of the coaching staff and he’s called plays in each of the last two preseason series, so he has some experience.

The offense might not be better with Curry at the controls, it’s theorized, but it can’t be worse. Maybe Curry is more involved already than we’d be led to believe. Or maybe Allen’s comments shouldn’t warrant such a deep dive.

What’s important is that the team do what they can to win this Jaguars game, and Allen has a list of areas they can improve in the second half: “We’ve got to win situational football. Third down, red zone, we’ve got to be able to score points. We’ve got to be able to convert on third down, we’ve got to be able to kick a field goal. I mean, it’s the little things like that we’ve got to be able to do to give ourselves an opportunity to win a game.”

Facing a two-score deficit and the threat of a losing record for the first time this season, it’s obvious that pressure is building for Allen and his staff. This isn’t the outcome the Saints expected when they hired him last year or pursued his choice of quarterback this offseason. He’s running out of time to return the results they anticipated.

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Packers coordinators speak coming out of the bye week

Adam Stenavich, Joe Barry and Rich Bisaccia spoke to the media coming out of the Packers bye week.

Green Bay Packers assistant coaches Adam Stenavich, Joe Barry and Rich Bisaccia spoke with the assembled media on Monday coming out of the team’s bye week.

The Packers are 2-3, riding a two-game losing streak and preparing to play the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

Matt LaFleur will talk to the media on Wednesday.

Here’s all the important things said by each Packers coordinator on Monday:

Crimson Tide fans react to news of Kevin Steele as new DC

Crimson Tide faithful have some interesting takes on Kevin Steele’s arrival

The Alabama Crimson Tide finally have a new defensive coordinator in now-former Miami Hurricanes DC Kevin Steele. This will be Steele’s third stint with the Tide, but he has also coached for Auburn and Tennessee to make things funny.

Steele is about as experienced as they come, but it has been a mixed reaction from the Tide faithful. Steele was very much a candidate for the Auburn head coaching position a few years ago when the Tigers ultimately decided on Bryan Harsin.

Steele should be a slight upgrade over Golding, especially with the talent in Tuscaloosa, but we will see!

Chiefs’ Dave Toub laments loss of Chris Lammons ahead of matchup vs. Bengals

#Chiefs ST coach Dave Toub was disappointed by the loss of Chris Lammons and told reporters the veteran gunner has a bright NFL future. | from @TheJohnDillon

Special teams play has been a strength of the Kansas City Chiefs’ strategy in the Andy Reid era, and coordinator Dave Toub has had his fingerprints all over the team’s game plans since joining the coaching staff in 2013. His unit has seen its struggles this season, with their most recent tribulation coming due to the waiver wire.

The team lost one of their most veteran special teamers this week, waiving Chris Lammons from the 53-man roster presumably to make room for the return of TE Jody Fortson. Lammons was claimed by the Bengals this week, and while he can’t join their team until after the Super Bowl in February, he can no longer rejoin the Chiefs’ practice squad and play on Sunday.

Asked how Lammons’ departure might affect his unit, Toub told reporters that he was disappointed to lose a key contributor, but thinks that the veteran gunner will continue to find success no matter where he plays.

“It happens,” Toub explained. “[General Manager Brett] Veach had a plan. He had a plan. He always has a plan, he’s a smart guy. [It] just didn’t work out, I guess, unfortunately for [Chris] Lammons because now he’s not going to be able to play. So, it’s just the way it goes. Obviously, he was a good player for us. And for three years, [he] did a lot for us and I want to thank him for that. I’m going to miss him, no question. But the future is still good for him.”

While losing talent during a playoff run is never an ideal scenario for a team trying to compete for a Super Bowl title, Toub’s shrewd approach to his unit’s preparation should help mitigate the loss of Lammons against the Cincinnati Bengals this weekend. They still have plenty of options to replace Lammons, including Marcus Kemp, who has been a more impactful player during the course of his career. It’s possible this situation could even help the Chiefs in the long run.

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Dolphins request interview with Saints’ co-defensive coordinator Kris Richard

The Miami Dolphins have requested an interview with New Orleans Saints co-defensive coordinator Kris Richard, who has already met with the Carolina Panthers;

Another interview request has come in for one of the New Orleans Saitns co-defensive coordinators. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the Miami Dolphins are seeking permission to speak with Kris Richard, who held the co-DC position along with Ryan Nielsen last season. Before that promotion, Richard worked as the secondary coach while Nielsen coached the defensive line.

Richard has been a full-time coordinator before with the Seattle Seahawks and Dallas Cowboys, and he’s been overqualified for the role in New Orleans for some time. He recently met with the Carolina Panthers about their defensive coordinator vacancy and it feels like only a matter of time before he moves on to bigger responsibilities.

And because he shares the co-coordinator title with Nielsen, the Saints can’t block Richard from any of these opportunities since it’s technically an advancement. Nielsen has interviewed with both the Minnesota Vikings and Atlanta Falcons, too, so there’s a real possibility the Saints lose one or both of them to this hiring cycle. It’s something to monitor in the days ahead.

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Defensive coordinator Joe Woods addresses defensive performance vs. Carolina

A hard-fought win has the #Browns’ defense riding high heading into Week 2.

A monumental win over the Carolina Panthers in Week 1 has the Cleveland Browns positioned to be top dogs in the AFC this season. Due in no small part to the play of their defense, the Browns have become a dominant force on the gridiron, and defensive coordinator Joe Woods had a lot to say on Thursday about his unit’s success in their opening game.

Speaking to reporters at Cleveland’s press conference, Woods said that despite the defense’s concession of a few big plays that kept Carolina in the mix near the end, he was satisfied with their performance, and is looking to build on the early-season progress.

“That is life in the NFL,” He explained of the chunk plays. “It is two or three plays, and it always seems like the game goes down to the last series. You have to play really well and error free just to give yourself a chance. I was happy the way we started. I thought everything with [our] game plan went really well, but after that, the plays with the bad substitution on my part and the end of the second half, there were just two or three plays we didn’t execute well on and we got in that type of game.”

Though it might not have been a perfectly executed game in all four quarters, the Browns defense did more than enough to get the job done. Against the high-octane offenses of the modern NFL, sometimes the best a coordinator can do is hope to limit the damage and just keep the score reasonably low.

Nevertheless, Cleveland is primed to lean on their defense for more wins as the season moves along. If they can keep improving week by week and build on the momentum gained in their first tilt, the Browns will prove to be a tough out in time for the playoffs in January.

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6 Saints coaches, staffers who should get buzz in the NFL’s next hiring cycle

The Saints could lose important members of the organization when the 2021 NFL hiring cycle kicks off, from Terry Fontenot to Dennis Allen.

Could this be the year the New Orleans Saints start to lose personnel to rival teams? With coaching staffs and front offices around the league already preparing for turnover in the offseason, it seems likely. Somehow half a dozen teams interviewed Saints assistants last year without hiring any of them away. Expect that to change as new opportunities present themselves to the people working behind the scenes in New Orleans that are hungry for more high-profile jobs in the NFL.

Others, like offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr., haven’t shown as keen an interest; his interview for the Packers job last offseason was just the third time he’s seriously considered an opportunity with another team in 12 years with the Saints, having interviewed for head coaching positions with the Raiders and Bears in 2012 and 2013, respectively. It’s possible he puts his name out there again in 2021, but there appear to be other, more ambitious candidates in New Orleans. Here are six names we’ll be watching closely:

USC Hires Former Longhorn Assistant Craig Naivar

USC has hired former UT assistant Craig Naivar as their safeties coach. With UT, Naivar was the co-DC, safeties coach, and ST coordinator.

USC has hired former Texas assistant coach Craig Naivar as their safeties coach. With the Longhorns, Naivar spent time as the co-defensive coordinator, safeties coach, and special teams coordinator. He had been on Tom Herman’s staff since he was hired as head coach in 2017.

After firing Todd Orlando after the season, Naivar took over as the defensive coordinator for the bowl game against Utah. It was the best performance of the season for the Texas defense, only allowing 11 points to a high powered Utes offense.

Naivar follows Todd Orlando to Southern Cal as he was hired as their defensive coordinator earlier this month. It will be the pair’s sixth consecutive season working together, going all the way back to their time at Houston.

The Trojan defense struggled last season, giving up nearly 30 points a game. The USC pass defense was the main issue as teams were able to throw for 246 yards per game against them. Orlando and Naivar will have a big task on their hand, trying to turn around a struggling defense in 2020.

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Former Texas Defensive Coordinator Todd Orlando named USC’s DC

After being hired by Texas Tech to be the LB coach, Todd Orlando has been hired by USC as their DC. He will be replacing Clancy Pendergast.

Nine days after being hired by Texas Tech to be their linebackers coach, Todd Orlando has left the Red Raiders in favor of taking the defensive coordinator job at Southern California. This being his first job in the Pac 12, Orlando will be replacing Clancy Pendergast in Los Angeles.

The Trojans defense struggled in 2019, giving up 29.4 points per game this season. Giving up over 400 yards a game, teams were able to run all over USC last season, letting up 162.8 rushing yards per game. The final straw for Pendergast came in the bowl game against Iowa, where the Hawkeyes scored 49 points.

This will be Orlando’s fifth different defensive coordinator job. It will be an uphill climb for him though, as USC has had a difficult time recruiting, ranking 10th in the conference.

Hopefully for Orlando, his defense will suite the Pac 12 better than it did in the Big 12. The Trojans are a ticking time bomb, being on the brink of firing their head coach Clay Helton. If Orlando can improve the defense, maybe USC won’t have to make any of those moves.

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3 candidates to replace Saints linebackers coach Mike Nolan

The Saints have not replaced Mike Nolan, now the Cowboys coordinator. Candidates may include Marcus Freeman, Pete Kwiatkowski, and Ben Bloom

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The NFL’s hiring cycle is winding down, and the New Orleans Saints appear to have escaped with their coaching staff largely intact. But there was one big departure in overqualified linebackers coach Mike Nolan, who was picked up by the Dallas Cowboys as their new defensive coordinator. Nolan’s loss with the team is huge; before he was hired in 2017, the Saints largely acted without a plan or presence in the middle of their defense.

Since Nolan’s arrival, the unit has put up some of the best performances in recent memory, or at least since Sean Payton was hired as head coach. They’ve hit on draft picks like Alex Anzalone (when healthy), free agent signings such as Demario Davis and A.J. Klein, and trade acquisitions like Kiko Alonso. Nolan did a terrific job of identifying his players’ strengths and putting them in positions to succeed. That’s not something that could be said out of his predecessors in New Orleans.

However, the Saints still haven’t announced his replacement. It’s likely that they’re waiting for the NFL to converge on Mobile, Ala. in the week leading up to this year’s Senior Bowl. Coaches and team personnel gather from all around the league’s orbit to socialize and scout draft prospects, and it’s where Payton has found new hires before (such as Nolan himself, and defensive line coach Ryan Nielsen).

With that in mind, here are three candidates we’d like to see the Saints target as their next linebackers coach:

Marcus Freeman, Cincinnati Bearcats

Freeman, 34, hit the ground running after his NFL playing career ended back in 2009. He’s spent the last decade rising in the coaching ranks with stops at his alma mater, Ohio State, as well as Kent State and Purdue before landing in Cincinnati, where he’s stayed since 2017. Now the team’s defensive coordinator, he’s coached up a Bearcats defense that often punches above its weight class. While it could be difficult to lure him away (bigger college programs have reportedly offered head coaching positions to him before, and were all turned down), he’d be a great fit in New Orleans. He could enjoy being surrounded by so many of his fellow Buckeyes graduates, even if they’re of a later generation.

Pete Kwiatkowski, Washington Huskies

Kwiatkowski, 54, has been a fixture in Washington for the last six years, working under recently-retired head coach Chris Peterson. Kwiatkowski has coordinated the Huskies defense both by himself and by splitting responsibilities with co-coordinators, which speaks to his ability to see the big picture and work well with others. The 31-year coaching veteran is probably content to remain on staff under his longtime friend and coworker, first-year head coach Jimmy Lake, but it’s possible the Saints could get him to jump to the NFL. There’s no arguing with his results — Kwiatkowski has seen 11 of his defenders drafted in the top-two rounds since 2015, including linebackers Shaq Thompson and Hau’oli Kikaha.

Ben Bloom, Dallas Cowboys

Bloom, 32, might be a baby getting thrown out with the bathwater in Dallas, much like defensive coordinator Kris Richard. Mike McCarthy is building a new coaching staff and retaining few members from longtime head coach Jason Garrett’s crew, so Bloom could be on the move. He’s spent the last nine years with the Cowboys, though just the last two were in the capacity of linebackers coach. Before that, he assisted longtime Matt Eberflus, who held that office. He’s played a part in helping scout and develop star linebackers such as Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch, and could be a good get for the Saints if he’s not part of McCarthy’s big plans.

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