Underhill: Saints are interviewing probably 12 coaches [Tracker: 7 scheduled interviews] (15 Viewers)

[ELLIASJWILLIAMS]

If the Saints miss on the top Offensive or Defensive candidates they should pivot quickly because if Rizzi ends up being the guy, the longer they wait, the more his choices dwindle down for who he can hire as OC and DC.

 

[SAINTSFAN]

Was it Holmgreen or Mike Sherman that interviewed? That's who I wanted. I forget who the other guys were. But I was definitely disappointed when they hired Payton. Good thing nobody listens to me.

Sherman

 

[RJS]

How many interviews are too many? Best I can tell, we considered five coaches the year we hired Payton.

Donnie Henderson
Maurice Carthon
Sean Payton
Mike Sherman
Mike Martz

From the perspective of a coach, if you know that the Saints are interviewing 12 candidates, do you really like interviewing here versus somewhere else where they've at least narrowed you down to their top five?

I think things are different now that we are in a Zoom interview world. You could interview 12+ guys through a video conference and then narrow that down to a handful that you bring to town. There seems to be big lists for other teams (Bears) looking.

 

[jayd265]

If the Saints miss on the top Offensive or Defensive candidates they should pivot quickly because if Rizzi ends up being the guy, the longer they wait, the more his choices dwindle down for who he can hire as OC and DC.

pretty sure adam schefter said on PMS yest that coaches with teams in playoffs cant have in person interviews until after divisional round. so jan 20th. doubt youd hire a coach via webcam.

and most good coaches will be on those teams. so its a waiting game.



schefter comes on about 28 mins. sometime in there he discusses it.

 

[SonOfNOLA]

 

[3ParStillDriver]

Every name feels incredibly underwhelming to me except Brady and to some degree Vrabel.

 

[Covington Saint]

I'm starting to hope Ben Johnson ends up a failure. His attitude and declinations of interviewing with half the league is starting to bother me. Look, i understand he has a right to do what he wants and knows he's a commodity at the moment but things change fast in the nfl and you are acting too good for entire nfl organizations. That's a big thought process to digest.

 

[jesusfish]

Slowik's name really fell off this year, huh?

 

[HouseCall]

The problem is… LOOMIS IS DOING THE INTERVIEWS, AND LOOMIS IS THE PRIMARY PROBLEM!!!

It doesn’t matter who he hires, it’s going to be a disaster! [He] has lost all faith and credibility with this fan base!

I saw this for a few clowns and downvotes - but it’s a fair question.

How much faith should the fan base have in Loomis at this point?

My biggest issue with this list of candidates who are coming in, isn’t if they are qualified or not, it’s that the guy who hired Dennis Allen and defended Dennis Allen, is the guy making the call.

I worry that Loomis sees himself as some kind of upper-tier GM and in reality, if not for Sean Payton, he’s actually a quite poor to below average GM.

The Saints record with Mickey Loomis as GM and without Sean Payton as the coach, have a record of 56-74.

Not great.

 

[Covington Saint]

I saw this for a few clowns and downvotes - but it’s a fair question.

How much faith should the fan base have in Loomis at this point?

My biggest issue with this list of candidates who are coming in, isn’t if they are qualified or not, it’s that the guy who hired Dennis Allen and defended Dennis Allen, is the guy making the call.

I worry that Loomis sees himself as some kind of upper-tier GM and in reality, if not for Sean Payton, he’s actually a quite poor to below average GM.

The Saints record with Mickey Loomis as GM and without Sean Payton as the coach, have a record of 56-74.

Not great.

How much faith should the patriots have in bob kraft after hiring jerod mayo? Point is, it doesn't matter. You're going to root for the next guy and hope things work out.

 

[Infoman]

I'm not saying he should be considered or interviewed - at all... But anyone think it strange that Kubiak's name hasn't even been rumored or mentioned?

 

[Covington Saint]

I'm not saying he should be considered or interviewed - at all... But anyone think it strange that Kubiak's name hasn't even been rumored or mentioned?

not really. we have no first year coordinators on the list i don't believe.

i think its more telling that it appears mickey knows he wants to keep klint involved moving forward.

 

[Infoman]

not really. we have no first year coordinators on the list i don't believe.

No yeah, I mean he's already in the building and just installed his offense in the offseason...

Chances are, when we hire a new coach.... He's out...

So... Not even a consider, rumor, mention... nothing?

Hmmm...

 

[Hedon James]

The problem is… LOOMIS IS DOING THE INTERVIEWS, AND LOOMIS IS THE PRIMARY PROBLEM!!!

It doesn’t matter who he hires, it’s going to be a disaster! [He] has lost all faith and credibility with this fan base!

I have to agree with this. And I think the irony is THICK that Loomis is so big on familiarity & continuity when, in fact, this franchise has experienced it's greatest periods of success when they went outside the organization for new blood.

I became a TRUE Saints fan when the USFL folded, and my favorite players and favorite coach ended up in NO. So I'll refrain from commentary on anything that happened before then. Besides, other than the Bum Phillips era, I hear it was mostly a sheet-show, LOL.

• Mr. Benson bought the team in the 1980s. He went outside the organization to hire Jim Finks as GM, one of the most respected GMs in the game. Jim Finks, in turn, went outside the organization (hell....outside the entire NFL) to hire Jim Mora. This resulted in the first "golden era" of Saints football. When Mora melted down, Rick Venturi was promoted from within to interim HC and compiled a 1-7(?) record.
• Mr. Finks passed away, and the Finks/Mora era slowly fizzled away. Bill Kuharich was promoted from within. This familiarity and continuity begat the hiring of Mike Ditka, which was a sheet-show from the get-go, and only got worse with time.
• Mr. Benson stepped in to clean up the mess, firing Kuharich and going outside the organization again to hire Randy Mueller. Kuharich was picked up the Chiefs front office in a low-profile executive capacity where he disappeared into anonymity...might even still work there? Never sniffed a GM opportunity again. Mueller went outside the organization to hire Jim Haslett, and this resulted in a renaissance of the Saints, at least for a short time. I wouldn't call it a "golden era", due to the short term nature of the era, but it did result in new heights...a playoff win....FINALLY!
• Mueller was dismissed for somewhat unknown/disputed reasons, but he brought Mickey Loomis with him from the Seahawks. Loomis was promoted from within, but the franchise continued to slide, both on and off the field, until the 3-13 Katrina season. I can't blame that one on Loomis, but maybe the slide started earlier. Mueller/Haslett won a playoff game. Loomis/Haslett didn't even make the playoffs. Haslett was dismissed.
• The Saints went outside the organization again and hired former Asst HC and QB coach of the Dallas Cowboys, Sean Payton. This began the 2nd "golden era" of Saints football. The TRUE "golden era" of multiple division titles, NFL records, frequent playoff appearances, deep runs, and a Superbowl CHAMPIONSHIP.
• CSP left under somewhat unknown/disputed reasons, and ML stayed inhouse to promote DA to HC. The Saints went from missing the playoffs due to a convoluted tie-break scenario in CSP's last season, to a record of 18-25 under DA; including a 2-7 final gasp before being fired mid-season. Darren Rizzi was promoted from within to interim HC and compiled a 3-5 record.

Looking at this in a broad brush manner, the best years of Saints football under the Benson era came from looking outside the organization. Jim Finks, Jim Mora, Randy Mueller, Mickey Loomis, Jim Haslett, and Sean Payton were ALL OUTSIDE HIRES that breathed new life into the franchise. Bill Kuharich, Rick Venturi, Dennis Allen, and Darren Rizzi were ALL INTERNAL HIRES with losing results. The only outside hire that produced losing results was Ditka.

Past history is no guarantee of future outcomes, but it seems pretty clear that the best chances for renewed success of the franchise will come from an OUTSIDE source....NOT FAMILIARTY. So why does ML seem to be placing such a premium on his familarity criteria?

 

[3ParStillDriver]

Really need to include Jesse Minter in that mix. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of bringing in another defensive head coach and I'm absolutely 1000% wanting Joe Brady. But having an "expansive" coaching interview process without Jesse Minter just feels off to me. That guys resume is a bit silly with the success he has had everywhere he has gone. It's as impressive as Joe Brady's for the defensive side of the ball.

Yes I want an offensive minded head coach, but if we can't get Brady or Ben Johnson, I'm simply just wanting a "good" head coach, and he's from the Harbough tree and is 100% more appealing then Glenn.