Saints Not Interested In Outside Staffing Additions

No changes are imminent for the New Orleans Saints’ offensive staff ahead of important three-game stretch.

NEW ORLEANS — The ongoing struggles of the New Orleans Saints offense have been a troublesome surprise through seven games. The 3-4 team is currently ranked No. 21 on scoring offense, No. 17 in total yardage and No. 22 in rushing offense while turning the ball over an average of more than once per game.

Head coach Dennis Allen spoke with New Orleans media on Monday ahead of the club’s Week 8 practice week. And while many may have assumed that the “mini-bye” following their Thursday night loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars may provide an opportunity for considerable change, the Saints are staying the course.

Oct 19, 2023; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints head coach Dennis Allen walks the sideline before a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at the Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-USA TODAY Sports

New Orleans has struggled to start fast, rank No. 26 in third down conversion percentage and an abysmal No. 28 in red zone to touchdown conversion percentage as well. Situational elements that Allen and starting quarterback Derek Carr have each referred to when it comes to where improvements must be made.

But while those numbers are vastly underwhelming relative to the previous expectations of the team’s talent, the Saints clearly feel the challenge is surmountable with the team and staff they have already assembled.

“There’s generally not a lot of people from outside the building that are going to make significant changes,” Allen said. “We’ve got our guys and we’re going to be hard at work to try to fix some issues.”

Clearly New Orleans feels that its struggles are able to be managed, however demonstrable their shortcomings have been over the last nearly season and a half to achieve consistent improvement. The Saints are betting on themselves as they are. Which makes a lot of sense from a practical standpoint.

Allen is right. Outside of the organization, there is no savior hire at this point in the year. Anyone that could have that level of impact as quickly as the team needs it already has a job somewhere. Some have entertained the idea of bringing in Carr’s former head coach, Super Bowl winner Jon Gruden.

Sep 21, 2020; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden with quarterback Derek Carr (4) before a NFL game against the New Orleans Saints at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Gruden visited the team in a pair of short stints this offseason. But his impact at this point would be minuscule. Bringing someone in from outside the organization and asking them to architect a whole new offense is not possible, and asking someone to run an offense that is not theirs is a quick way to not hire someone. Such an arrangement would not make sense. An active lawsuit against the NFL, which the league is set to soon appeal, could be quite the roadblock for for that process anyway, even if it did make sense.

If the Saints want to improve, they are committing to doing so as they are.

Whether or not they can pull it off starts with this weekend’s road matchup with the Indianapolis Colts. But as has been the challenge since the 2022 season, stringing together multiple games of success will be paramount.