All Dolphins

Another Former Dolphins Assistant Gets His Shot

Former Miami Dolphins associate head coach Darren Rizzi is taking over for the New Orleans Saints.

Alain Poupart

Miami Dolphins associate head coach Darren Rizzi reacts during the game against the Oakland Raiders at Hard Rock Stadium. The Dolphins defeated the Raiders 28-20 in 2018.
Miami Dolphins associate head coach Darren Rizzi reacts during the game against the Oakland Raiders at Hard Rock Stadium. The Dolphins defeated the Raiders 28-20 in 2018. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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Add another former Miami Dolphins assistant who's now a head coach in the NFL.

Darren Rizzi, who spent nine seasons (2010-18) with the Dolphins as an assistant, including the final two as associate head coach, has been named interim head coach of the New Orleans Saints.

Rizzi takes over for Dennis Allen, who was fired Monday morning after the Saints lost for the seventh consecutive time, this one against the lowly Carolina Panthers.

Rizzi has been with the Saints since 2019 when he took over as special teams coordinator after leaving the Dolphins and added the title of assistant head coach in 2022.

Before he left Miami, Rizzi interviewed for the Dolphins head coaching position after the team fired Adam Gase but lost out to Brian Flores.

With the Saints, Rizzi inherits a team that not only has nosedived after starting the season with two impressive victories — 47-10 against Carolina and 44-19 against the Dallas Cowboys — but has the worst salary cap situation heading into 2025 (currently projected at $61 million over, per overthecap.com.

In Rizzi's 14 seasons as a special teams coordinator, his units have finished in the top 10 nine out of 14 times in Rick Gosselin's annual rankings based on 22 statistical categories. That includes five of his nine seasons with the Dolphins, who have finished in the bottom third of the league in four of the five seasons since Rizzi left.

In addition to his obvious coaching acumen, Rizzi is also known as a great motivator, so it's not a surprise that he's getting a shot. It also says here that he will become a good NFL head coach at some point.

GOOD DOLPHINS COMPANY

Rizzi is now the sixth head coach in the NFL, having previously worked as a Dolphins assistant, along with his former Saints colleague Dan Campbell of the NFC-leading Detroit Lions.

The others are:

  • Zac Taylor of the Cincinnati Bengals;
  • Brian Daboll of the New York Giants;
  • Dan Quinn of the Washington Commanders; and
  • Tampa Bay's Todd Bowles (who, like Campbell, served as Miami's interim head coach).

Additionally, six NFL defensive coordinators are former Dolphins coaches:

  • Lou Anarumo with Cincinnati;
  • Matt Burke with the Houston Texans;
  • Vance Joseph with the Denver Broncos;
  • Patrick Graham with the Las Vegas Raiders;
  • Vic Fangio with the Philadelphia Eagles; and
  • Brian Flores with the Minnesota Vikings.

Only one offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson of the Detroit Lions, previously coached in Miami.

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Alain Poupart
ALAIN POUPART

Alain Poupart is the publisher/editor of All Dolphins and co-host of the All Dolphins Podcast. Alain has covered the Miami Dolphins on a full-time basis since 1989 for various publications and media outlets, including Dolphin Digest, The Associated Press, the Dolphins team website, and the Fan Nation Network (part of Sports Illustrated). In addition to being a credentialed member of the Miami Dolphins press corps, Alain has covered three Super Bowls (for NFL.com, Football News and the Montreal Gazette), the annual NFL draft, the Senior Bowl, and the NFL Scouting Combine. During his almost 40 years in journalism, which began at the now-defunct Miami News, Alain has covered practically every sport at one time or another, from tennis to golf, baseball, basketball and everything in between. The career also included time as a copy editor, including work on several books such as "Still Perfect," an inside look at the Miami Dolphins' 1972 perfect season. A native of Montreal, Canada, whose first language is French, Alain grew up a huge hockey fan but soon developed a love for all sports, including NFL football. He has lived in South Florida since the 1980s.

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