I’ve always said this about Allen, even when attempting to defend him from criticism - I believe that Allen is a very good Xs and Os defensive coach. Obviously there were some issues with late-game failings but overall he took a really terrible defense and brought it into the upper-quarter of the league.
Where Allen failed, in my opinion, is that his head coaching style is a relic in the modern NFL.
Young players respond more to young or fiery coaches. The stoic “awe shucks” guy isn’t as effective as it was 25 years ago.
That’s not criticism of Allen, it just is what it is.
That’s why I’m really curious to see if Rizzi can keep the fires burning.
Getting a team juiced with a new coach and for the arch rivals is one thing - keeping them juiced for an uncommon opponent that is also struggling is something else.