New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen entered the 2024 NFL season on the hot seat and was fired months later following a seven-game losing streak. With the Saints coaching search now underway, there are already NFL rumors circulating about who could be the head coach in 2025.
New Orleans isn’t exactly the most appealing landing spot for a head coach. The team is essentially tied to quarterback Derek Carr for another season and the team has arguably the worst salary-cap situation in the NFL moving forward. The Saints roster is also quite old, led by Cameron Jordan (35), Taysom Hill (34), Demario Davis (35), Tyrann Mathieu (32) and Alvin Kamara (30 in July).
- New Orleans Saints cap space 2024 (OverTheCap): -$63.761 million
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The lack of cap flexibility with an aging roster will certainly make it harder for New Orleans to land one of the top head coach candidates in 2025. It will be even harder assuming the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears and New York Giants all fire their head coaches during the season.
While New Orleans likely won’t be able to land one of the most coveted coaching candidates in the NFL, there does seem to be a shot of the organization’s inside track opening the door to one of the up-and-comers on the defensive side.
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On Friday’s episode of the Inside Coverage podcast, senior NFL reporter Charles Robinson for Yahoo Sports highlighted Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn as a name to keep an eye on in the Saints coaching search.
“Aaron Glenn is going to be on the top of a number of head-coaching searches next year. I think there’s a chance he gets the Saints job after Dennis Allen got fired. Very well-liked in the Saints organization, a lot of instutional memory there for him.”
Yahoo Sports’ Charles Robinson onDetroit Lions DC Aaron Glenn and the New Orleans Saints HC vacancy
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Glenn, age 52, played for the Saints in 2008 and then returned to the team in 2016 as a defensive backs coach under Sean Payton. He worked in New Orleans from 2016-’20, becoming well-known for his outstanding work with defensive backs and he was viewed as an integral part of the Saints’ defensive success.
When Dan Campbell left New Orleans to become the Lions head coach in 2021, one of his first moves was making Glenn his defensive coordinator. The two worked together on the Saints coaching staff from 2016-’20, building a strong working relationship that remains today.
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Not only would the Saints organization have glowing recommendations of Glenn from Campbell and Payton, but the locker room would also likely sign off on the hire. The Saints locker room loved Glenn during his time in New Orleans and it was one of the reasons he received a head-coaching interview with the team in 2022.
A few years later, now the architect of one of the best defenses in football and playing a critical role in Detroit’s status as a Super Bowl contender, it’s very possible that Glenn will be the Saints head coach in 2025.