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Former Saints Player Gives Insight On When Ex-Head Coach Might Have Lost Locker Room

That Jamaal Williams touchdown did more damage than what was led on, according to a former Saints player.

John Hendrix

Jan 7, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Atlanta Falcons linebacker Nate Landman (53) tackles New Orleans Saints running back Jamaal Williams (21) during the second half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
Jan 7, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Atlanta Falcons linebacker Nate Landman (53) tackles New Orleans Saints running back Jamaal Williams (21) during the second half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
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There's going to be plenty of things that will float to the surface following the Saints' decision to fire Dennis Allen. Former offensive lineman and now WDSU Analyst James Hurt shed some very interesting information on when things might have started to unravel in New Orleans. It was the touchdown plunge late in the game in the season finale against the Falcons.

Allen issued an apology publicly in his press conference to Arthur Smith, saying that wasn't who the team was. Players like Jameis Winston told Allen that it was a team decision and apologized. Loomis said in his end of the season presser that he would have rathered it not happen. Naturally, a question was asked about the locker room being lost because of it, which he said, "It's silly." Allen said he didn't believe there was any fracture in the locker room.

Hurst said, “Many of the players felt he missed an opportunity there to have our backs, to defend us, even though what we did was wrong, admittedly."

"But in the locker room the next day, there was just a lot of negative talk about it. Felt like as your head coach you want him to defend you, no matter what you do. And then hey, behind closed doors, if he wants to chew us all out for not obeying him, we totally understand and we get it. But that was a moment for the locker room."

Hurst later said the team learned GM Mickey Loomis was going to address the team, which he said was very rare. Players thought then that Allen could have been relieved of his duties then. However, it didn't happen.

"Maybe that was the beginning of the end," Hurst said. "That was definitely tough for the players to swallow and something surely some of the guys hadn’t quite gotten over.”

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John Hendrix
JOHN HENDRIX

I officially started covering the New Orleans Saints & other NFL topics in 2011. My work has been featured on various outlets over the years. I worked closely with Skyhorse Publishing in Fall 2018 to update the book, Tales From the New Orleans Saints Sidelines, which filled in all Saints material from the 2013-2017 seasons. Prior to joining Saints News Network, I served as the Managing Editor of SB Nation's Canal Street Chronicles for 3.5 years, and before that with FanSided's Who Dat Dish as the Managing Editor for several years. I have also had experiences of being a freelance Saints reporter for The Sun Herald in Biloxi, MS and a contributing writer for WDSU, a local NBC TV station in New Orleans. I have appeared on a vast amount of TV and Radio shows, both nationally and locally. For tips, comments, or suggestions, please contact me at johnhendrix@saintsnews.net

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