Saints' Darren Rizzi already proved he could do something Dennis Allen always struggled with
At long last, the losing streak is over for the New Orleans Saints. It did not come against the Denver Broncos or Carolina Panthers. Instead, it came against the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons. Rizzi wins first game After firing head coach Dennis Allen last week, New Orleans turned to special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi to […]
At long last, the losing streak is over for the New Orleans Saints. It did not come against the Denver Broncos or Carolina Panthers. Instead, it came against the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons.
Rizzi wins first game
After firing head coach Dennis Allen last week, New Orleans turned to special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi to lead their team for the rest of the season. He's an experienced, veteran coach who will get an interview after the season for the head coach role, assuredly.
New Orleans played with plenty of energy and looked much more committed to success than they had over the past handful of games. There was a different feel to the Saints in Week 10 against Atlanta.
That showed on the scoreboard as well. After losing to the Falcons earlier in the season due to terrible tackling and frustrating third downs, they were sure-handed and committed to playing hard.
Allen's struggles
Dennis Allen won just two games against teams with a winning record during his time as the head coach of the Saints. Rizzi has one of those victories after coaching just one game.
It’s a concerning trend. Allen and his staff are routinely getting outfoxed by playoff teams and opponents who have seen a thing or two. Just like last season’s demoralizing loss to Sean McVay’s Los Angeles Rams, the Andy Reid-led Chiefs picked up on their tendencies and picked them apart.
As you can imagine from that statistic, New Orleans really just beat up on struggling teams during Allen's tenure.
Every time they faced a top-flight HC, Allen seemed outmatched, and his team look overwhelmed. Even against a talented Falcons team under Rizzi, New Orleans never lost composure.
