Well that’s interesting. The New Orleans Saints are considering a move to run with co-defensive coordinators under first-year head coach Dennis Allen, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, who reports that the team has narrowed its search to in-house candidates Kris Richard and Ryan Nielsen. And there’s a possibility that Richard and Nielsen end up being named co-defensive coordinators.
That’s an eventuality first suggested by NewOrleans.Football’s Nick Underhill, and the Saints may agree with his logic. If Allen is going to continue to call plays defensively after being promoted to head coach, elevating his top two assistants to these positions empowers them to make a greater influence on game planning and shaping the unit overall.
It doesn’t feel like either of them will be long for New Orleans. Richard, the Saints’ secondary coach, interviewed for three different open defensive coordinator jobs this offseason, meeting with the Baltimore Ravens, Indianapolis Colts, and Pittsburgh…