Tag: opening

Former Saints QB shares his prediction for who will be head coach in 2025

Former Saints quarterback Chase Daniel shared his prediction for who will be head coach in 2025. Does he have an inside track on their thinking?

Does Chase Daniel have an inside track on the New Orleans Saints head coach search? The longtime NFL backup has found success as a media analyst and commenter after hanging up his cleats, and Drew Brees’ old handshake partner shared his predictions for which candidates will take which jobs in this year’s cycle.

And he doesn’t have Aaron Glenn, Kellen Moore, Mike McCarthy or Kliff Kingsbury going to New Orleans. Instead of those A-listers, it’s New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka who Daniel sees wearing in black and gold.

Kafka is visiting the Saints this week for a second, in-person interview. What’s interesting is that his time with the Giants isn’t really the selling-point for him. It’s his past experience coaching quarterbacks under Andy Reid on the Kansas City Chiefs that’s most appealing. Interestingly, Daniel previously noted that Kafka wasn’t running Reid’s playbook under Giants head coach Brian Daboll, and that it was clear he “definitely isn’t a part of the conversations” surrounding the team’s draft strategy at last year’s combine.

So it sounds like Kafka made a bad bet in going from Kansas City to New York, and wound up stuck in a dead-end job under Daboll. Half the teams with job openings are competing for time with him during this hiring cycle and he’ll be in a prominent role at the Senior Bowl, so he’s clearly highly regarded around the league. Maybe a move to New Orleans with more opportunities to make decisions and run his own offense could be good for him.

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Why are the Saints viewed as an unattractive landing spot for coaches?

The attractiveness of the Saints head coaching position limited by the lack of answer at quarterback and salary cap issues

Sports Illustrated’s Connor Orr shared his pros and cons for every NFL head coach vacancy, including the New Orleans Saints. While the pros were feel-good things, such as the fan base and job security, the negative was built on more concrete points.

Orr wrapped up his article by calling New Orleans, “the most difficult avenue to (win) right away.” Quarterback and monetary issues have molded this opinion for Orr.

Derek Carr doesn’t seem like the solution. He’s an option that can help you stay afloat, but he isn’t going to take you far. Spencer Rattler is still young. The opinion on him shouldn’t drop heavily after the 2024 campaign, despite him not winning a game. Rattler still showed flashes that a quarterback whisperer should want to invest in.

What Rattler didn’t showcase was the ability to be the answer right away or confirm he could be the answer eventually. Your veteran isn’t a long-term solution, and the Saints are still in limbo with their youth.

Conversations around the Saints’ management of the salary cap have been ongoing for years. We’ve finally reached the point where the Saints will have to pay the cost. New Orleans isn’t in reach of a Super Bowl, so they should eat that cost now.

There’s no better time than when you grab a new head coach to start over. Unfortunately for that head coach, that means he’s inheriting a situation that he must lead the turn around from the bottom.

We’ve documented the lack of quarterback to lead the offensive ship. On defense, your key players are getting older.

The next head coach will have a lot on his plate as far as roster building. The limited building blocks may be the greatest factor working against the Saints this coaching cycle.

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NFL writer lays out Saints’ three biggest selling points to head coach candidates

This SI writer finds the most attractive aspects of the Saints job to be an easy division with a passionate fan base, and the benefit of low expectations:

The New Orleans Saints aren’t seen as the most desirable vacancy this year (depending on where you look, they could have the worst head coach opening in the NFL), but Sports Illustrated’s Connor Orr laid out what could attract coaches to join the black and gold:

An incredible fan base and unique locale for the right head coach; a division that, year after year, seems to elicit no interest in a runaway winner; a place where moderate success and salesmanship can lead to a long career. 

Orr doesn’t mention young talent like Chris Olave, Taliese Fuaga, Rashid Shaheed, Bryan Bresee or Erik McCoy in his pros. That either means he generally doesn’t view the Saints’ young players as a plus, or it just ranks low on the list.

There is probably no greater upside to coming to New Orleans than the weak state of the NFC South. The Buccaneers have won four division titles in a row, but they’ve felt like benefactors of a poor division for at least the last two years. Tampa Bay has lost seven or more games in each of the last three seasons.

The Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers are beginning their attempts at ascension. This division is free for the taking, and with the right leadership, the Saints can be the ones to grab it. It’s hard to say you’re ever far away in a division that’s been this bad for so long.

The last three seasons have tanked the Saints’ reputation, but the fan base is still looked at highly. Reggie Bush, also, placed a premium on the connection between the fans, city and a potential head coach. It’s a passionate community, and it’s not hard to become beloved with success.

When Orr labeled the Saints as “a place where moderate success and salesmanship can lead to a long career,” he had to be referencing Dennis Allen getting a third year when some thought he’d be out after Year 2. That description doesn’t fit Sean Payton, but it does fit back to back seasons hovering around .500.

This is just another example of how the view of the organization has dropped recently.

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Report: Former Wisconsin head coach a candidate for the Boston College opening

Would this work out?

Former Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst is a candidate for the current opening at Boston College, according to a report from The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman.

Chryst spend 2023 as an offensive analyst at Texas under head coach Steve Sarkisian after Wisconsin fired him midway through the 2022 season. He at least somewhat aided Texas in its successful 12-2 campaign, Big 12 Championship and College Football Playoff birth.

Boston College, meanwhile, has an opening after its former head coach Jeff Hafley took the defensive coordinator job with the Green Bay Packers.

Feldman writes that he’s heard Chryst “has gotten some traction for this job,” alongside top candidate Ohio State OC Bill O’Brien and other candidates including Army head coach Jeff Monken, Air Force head coach Troy Calhoun, Boston College outside linebackers coach Paul Rhoads and former Boston College player Al Washington.

O’Brien appears to be the favorite after spending 2023 on the Patriots’ offensive staff, that before taking the Ohio State offensive coordinator job after the 2023 season.

Whether the job is his or not, a key takeaway here is Chryst’s clear desire to return to the coaching mix after a year at Texas. He recently was a candidate for the vacant offensive coordinator spot at Iowa, and now is reportedly in the mix for a head coaching position.

If we don’t see Chryst somewhere on the sideline in 2024, I’d bet he’s back leading a program in 2025.

Seahawks speak to former Eagles HC Doug Pederson about OC vacancy

The Seahawks have recently spoken with former Eagles head coach Doug Pederson about Seattle offensive coordinator vacancy.

A second name has now surfaced in the Seattle Seahawks’ hunt for a new offensive coordinator. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Seattle has spoken with former Philadelphia Eagles coach, Doug Pederson.

“The #Seahawks have spoken with former #Eagles coach Doug Pederson about their offensive coordinator job, per sources,” Pelissero tweeted on Saturday. “Fired five days ago, Pederson may also still end up drawing interest for another head-coaching job. His options are developing.”

The Seahawks parted ways with former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer following Seattle’s loss to the Rams in the wild-card round. Schottenheimer had been hired in 2018 and spent three seasons with the team.

Seattle has also had recent discussions about the offensive coordinator position with another former head coach, ex-Chargers’ Anthony Lynn.

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