The last five days have been a whirlwind for Saints fans.
After a 23-22 loss to the Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints owner Gayle Benson finally decided she had seen enough.
While General Manager Mickey Loomis might have been happy to give out-going head coach Dennis Allen a little more rope, Benson met with players to gauge the temperature of the locker room.
A swift decision was made and Allen’s time in New Orleans was over.
Darren Rizzi, former special team coordinator, has taken over as interim head coach and is left with eight games in the 2024 season to steady the ship and prove his mettle.
With the trade deadline looming 24 hours after Allen’s firing, many wondered whether the Saints would renege on their previous statement of not being sellers. It is not the Saints way.
But firing a head coach mid-season is also not the Saints modus operandi so we were already in uncharted territory.
As rumours started spreading, Marshon Lattimore became the main target of speculation. Many teams were rumoured to be calling New Orleans to enquire about their star cornerback.
Kansas City, keen to complete the ‘three-peat’ and win their third consecutive Super Bowl, seemed to be the team to watch.
Then out of nowhere, the news broke. The Washington Commanders, defying all expectations on a blistering 7-2 run with their new franchise quarterback Jayden Daniels, swooped in to whisk Lattimore away to DC.
So what now for the New Orleans Saints?
They have given a clear indication that they are now in rebuild mode. But they have a number of highly-paid veteran players on the books for the 2025 and 2026 seasons. Their cap situation is a real barrier to rebuilding through free agency.
Ultimately, they need to start hitting on their drafts. The Lattimore trade has bought them additional draft capital – third, fourth and sixth round picks – but the last few years have shown that drafting is not always the Saints’ strong suit.
‘Hate Week’ in the Deep South
Ladies and gentlemen, it’s Falcons hate week.
pic.twitter.com/RXn2pGelph— Barstool NOLA (@BarstoolNOLA) September 23, 2024
So to this weekend and the matchup in the Crescent City against their bitter rivals the Atlanta Falcons.
Atlanta find themselves atop the NFC South, having gotten the best of the Saints earlier this season at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
As I head west towards Louisiana at 36,000ft on my British Airways Boeing 777 flight, gazing down at the rolling blue, white-crested waves of the Atlantic Ocean, I wonder what will be this Sunday in the Caesar’s Superdome.
Saints running back Alvin Kamara, fresh off a contract renewal that should make him a Saint for life, is 12 yards away from becoming the team’s all-time rushing leader.
Whatever happens this weekend, we stand on the edge of a quintessential moment in Saints history, just weeks after the induction of quarterback Drew Brees into the Saints Hall of Fame.
Darren Rizzi has already started to implement changes to the team. Excitement is building. We are all ‘Rizzed up’.
Is that enough to prevail against the Falcons? Perhaps. Perhaps not. But do not underestimate the power of a talented team finding new energy under a much-loved interim head coach.
Some may want New Orleans to accept their fate and bring in a top-three draft pick in 2025.
I want my team to win. Nothing will ever change that.
