Tag: search

Lions head coach search zeroing in on Saints assistant Dan Campbell

The Detroit Lions have identified New Orleans Saints assistant head coach Dan Campbell as the favorite candidate to replace Matt Patricia.

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Sean Payton’s coaching tree could soon grow a new branch. The Detroit Lions have identified New Orleans Saints assistant Dan Campbell as the favorite among their candidates to replace fired coach Matt Patricia, so much so that the team canceled an interview with Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, who was also interested in the job. Campbell previously interviewed with the Lions virtually, before the hiring of general manager Brad Holmes.

The Lions’ pool of candidates was also thinned down as their options were snapped up by rival teams. San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh was hired by the New York Jets, while Tennessee Titans offensive play caller Arthur Smith was offered to work with the Atlanta Falcons.

As reported by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero, league rules dictate that in-person interviews cannot be conducted and new contracts cannot be signed until a coach’s current team has finished their season. That means the Lions want to wait until the Saints have either won Super Bowl LV or been eliminated from the playoffs to seal the deal with Campbell, much like the Falcons are on standby until Saints executive Terry Fontenot is available.

Campbell first got on the NFL’s radar as the Miami Dolphins interim head coach back in 2015, later returning to New Orleans (where he’d once played for Payton) to coach tight ends. He earned the assistant head coach title and now appears close to running his own team soon.

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Report: Falcons pick Saints VP Terry Fontenot as next GM, but can’t sign him yet

NFL Network reports New Orleans Saints personnel executive Terry Fontenot is the favorite for the Atlanta Falcons general manager position.

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NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the Atlanta Falcons are closing in on their next general manager, with New Orleans Saints vice president of pro personnel Terry Fontenot emerging as the favorite for their vacancy. But there’s a catch: Fontenot cannot sign with a new team until the Saints’ season is over, either by playoffs elimination or winning the Super Bowl.

Losing Fontenot would be a big blow to the front office. He’s done a great job of evaluating prospects at the pro ranks, both as free agents from other NFL teams and standouts in the CFL, as well as startup leagues like the XFL and AAF. He’s earned the assistant general manager title after years of hard work in New Orleans, and he’s now on the verge of running his own team.

Additionally, because Fontenot is a minority candidate being hired to a general manager position, the Saints would receive third-round compensatory draft picks in 2021 and 2022. That’s reliant on Atlanta sealing the deal, of course.

It’s just a shame he’ll likely be doing so across the division. But the Falcons haven’t been able to beat the Saints, so the only strategy left to them is trying to hire up-and-comers from New Orleans..

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Report: Jets request head coach interview with Saints secondary coach Aaron Glenn

The New York Jets have requested an interview with New Orleans Saints assistant Aaron Glenn for their open head coach position, per report.

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https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1347205542800990211

Here’s a huge opportunity for New Orleans Saints defensive backs coach Aaron Glenn: NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the New York Jets have filed a formal interview request for Glenn in their search for a new head coach. Glenn, a 48-year old former cornerback, started his NFL career with the Jets back in 1994 and has been coaching the New Orleans secondary since 2016. He also worked in the Jets front office as a personnel scout in 2012 and 2013.

Glenn could be a good get for New York. He’s well-liked by his players and has done a good job getting production out of undrafted rookies and journeymen over the years like Ken Crawley, De’Vante Harris, and Grant Haley (who bagged his first career interception in his first game with the Saints last week). While the Saints secondary has funneled penalty yards to opponents for pass-interference fouls, they’ve always played competitive football.

So this is a situation worth monitoring. The Saints blocked the Cincinnati Bengals from interviewing Glenn for their defensive coordinator opening back in 2019, and the New York Giants went in a different direction after interviewing him for the same post in 2020. While Big Blue offered Glenn a larger role than he’s seen in New Orleans, he’s continued to have his eye on a bigger prize. And if things go his way, he could land it just across town from the Giants that passed on him.

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Report: Saints VP of pro personnel Terry Fontenot to interview with Lions, Falcons

New Orleans Saints vice president of pro personnel Terry Fontenot has scheduled G,M. interviews with the Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons.

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When you’ve had as much success as the New Orleans Saints have enjoyed in recent years, other teams start to pay attention. And those that can’t beat the Saints on the field are starting to try and pry away the behind-the-scenes decision-makers that have engineered four straight division wins.

The MMQB’s Albert Breer reports that the Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons have scheduled interviews for their open general manager positions with Terry Fontenot, the Saints’ vice president of pro personnel. Fontenot has spent the bulk of his career in New Orleans, where he’s played a critical role evaluating NFL free agents and helped the Saints acquire Pro Bowlers like Demario Davis, Larry Warford, and Jared Cook.

He’s also done a great job identifying players who can help pad out the depth chart and the practice squad, doing a lot to maintain one of the league’s best special teams units. It’s not for nothing that the Saints routinely rank among the NFL leaders in starting field position, in large part due to the diamonds in the rough Fontenot has unearthed.

So, yes, he’d be a huge loss to the front office. But someone with his skill at identifying talented players deserves the opportunity to call his own shots, and this early interest in his services from around the league speaks to that shared belief. Expect more teams to contact him as the hiring cycle spins ahead.

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