The latest on the Saints HC search from @TomPelissero. pic.twitter.com/0L6j3ccaBg
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) January 26, 2025
It’s been a tough week in the New Orleans Saints head coach search. Two of the team’s top targets, Aaron Glenn and Joe Brady, chose to pursue other opportunities and declined in-person interviews with general manager Mickey Loomis after working down the hall from him just a few years ago. All six of the other head coaching vacancies have been filled. If the Saints could get out of their own way they could have their pick of the candidates still available, but guys like Brady clearly don’t view them as an attractive destination.
Still, time is of the essence. Whoever does get hired as head coach will have to build a new staff and the competition for those candidates is heating up. The sooner the Saints can get in the mix, the better. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported Sunday morning that the team has made plans to potentially fly in to another city to sit down with a potential head coach after twice interviewing Anthony Weaver and Mike Kafka, as well as their own interim coach Darren Rizzi.
“The Saints also plan to speak again with Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. They are allowed under the rules to speak with Moore, win or lose for the Eagles today, but the result of this game could impact the timing. The Saints ideally want to speak with Moore as soon as possible. Could head to Philadelphia even to speak with him as soon as Monday,” Pelissero said.
It wouldn’t be the first time a team charters a private flight to another NFL city to interview a coach, but it would be the first time the Saints have done it this cycle. Thus far all contact with coach candidates has meant interviews (either virtually or in person at the team headquarters in Metairie) with general manager Mickey Loomis, his lieutenants Jeff Ireland, Khai Harley, and Michael Parenton plus consultants Randy Mueller and Dave Ziegler.
Loading all of them up and onto Gayle Benson’s private jet to go meet with a twice-fired offensive coordinator almost reeks of desperation to fill the job, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
