New Orleans Saints News & Rumors

Mickey Loomis: Saints’ Next HC Will Help Shape Direction At QB

Uncertainty looms over the Saints’ direction at the quarterback position for 2025. The same is true on the sidelines since a new head coach has yet to be hired. Both situations, to no surprise, are linked.

During a Monday press conference, general manager Mickey Loomis made it clear no final decision has been made at this point with the respect to how the team will proceed under center. He added (via Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football) New Orleans’ next head coach will have a large say in whether or not Derek Carr will remain uncontested atop the depth chart or other options will be brought in. For his part, though, Loomis praised the veteran signal-caller.

“I have a high level of confidence in Derek,” Loomis said (via Underhill). ” He’s done some really good things here.”

Carr is currently on track to collect $30MM in base salary for 2025. $10MM of that figure is already locked in, and the remainder will become guaranteed in full in mid-March unless any adjustments are made. The four-time Pro Bowler recently made it clear he will not accept a pay cut, so a decision on a restructure (something the Saints, as usual, will need to rely on to achieve cap compliance this spring) or a trade or release will need to be made fairly soon.

In the meantime, New Orleans’ head coaching search continues. The team has already conducted several interviews, and few other candidates (with the potential exception of Mike McCarthy, who will not return with the Cowboys) are likely to receive attention. For now, Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn looks to be the leading contender for the gig. He served as the Saints’ defensive backs coach for five seasons, and a return to his former team remains a distinct possibility.

After New Orleans elected to move on from Dennis Allen midseason, special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi was promoted to interim HC. Shifting to a coach with an offensive background could take place with an eye on maximizing Carr’s remaining play as he approaches his age-34 season. In any case, changes elsewhere on the staff could take place once a new head coaching hire is made, as evidenced by the fact offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak is taking interviews with other teams for the same role.

Neither Spencer Rattler nor Jake Haener showed enough late in the season to suggest they could be take over QB1 duties in the event the Saints were to move on from Carr, but it remains to be seen how the team’s next head coach will perceive the situation under center.

Browns Interview Saints’ Klint Kubiak For OC

The Browns are interviewing Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak for the same position on Monday, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com.

Kubiak has a history with Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski. The two overlapped on the Vikings’ offensive coaching staff in 2013 and 2014. Kubiak was an offensive quality control coach, while Stefanski was the assistant quarterbacks coach one season and tight ends coach the next.

Stefanski has hired a former Vikings colleague before. His first defensive coordinator in Cleveland was Joe Woods, who arrived in Minnesota as the defensive backs coach in 2006, the same year Stefanski was hired as an assistant to then-head coach Brad Childress.

Kubiak is also scheduled to meet with the Seahawks for their OC job on Tuesday, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. He is still under contract with the Saints, but the team granted both interview requests amid their own search for a new head coach. Their list of candidates includes five current offensive coordinators. If one of them gets the job, Kubiak could lose his play-calling duties or be replaced altogether.

The Saints were one of the hottest offenses in the league to start the season with 91 points in their first two games. Injuries to key players hinder the rest of their season; Derek Carr, Chris Olave, Alvin Kamara, Rashid Shaheed, Erik McCoy, and Taysom Hill all missed significant time.

Kubiak would face a tough task ahead of him in Cleveland. The Browns offense finished with the fewest points, second-fewest yards per play, and most turnovers in the NFL in 2024 as they cycled through four different quarterbacks and struggled to stay healthy along the offensive line.

Kubiak’s first order of business would be working with Stefanski and Browns general manager Andrew Berry to decide on the team’s next starting quarterback. Deshaun Watson may miss the entire 2025 season after re-tearing his Achilles, Jameis Winston is set to hit free agency this spring, and neither Dorian Thompson-Robinson nor Bailey Zappe have showed they can be a long-term starter in the NFL.

Winston has expressed a desire to return to Cleveland, and the Browns also have the second overall pick in the draft. They could pair the familiar veteran with a top rookie prospect to start rebuilding after the disastrous trade for Watson in 2022.

Jets, Saints Remain Top Suitors For Lions DC Aaron Glenn

To no surprise, Aaron Glenn is among the most popular candidates in this year’s head coaching cycle. With the top-seeded Lions on the bye this week, the team’s defensive coordinator was busy taking interviews with each of his numerous suitors.

[RELATED: Head Coaching Search Tracker]

Glenn spoke with five teams in recent days, taking every interview with an interested party except for the Patriots. New England has since become the first team to fill its HC vacancy, making the expected move of hiring Mike Vrabel. Now that the first domino has fallen, Glenn’s name in particular will be worth watching closely.

The 52-year-old “crushed” each of his interviews, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones reports (video link). As a result, Glenn could very well find himself involved in follow-up meetings with at least a few teams as their searches heat up. To no surprise, Jones notes the Jets and Saints remain potential landing spots provided Glenn does indeed land a head coaching position for the first time in his career.

During the course of his 15-year tenure as a player, Glenn spent eight seasons in New York. It was with the Jets that he earned two of his three Pro Bowl nods, and his success on the field (not to mention the degree to which his stock as a coaching candidate has increased in recent years) helped make him one of the team’s first recipients of an interview request. Indeed, ESPN’s Dan Graziano writes the three names mentioned most frequently in connection to the Jets are Glenn, Vrabel and Vikings DC Brian Flores.

Having moved on from Robert Saleh after three-plus seasons, the Jets are a candidate to change approaches on the sidelines by looking to a coach with an offensive background. Graziano’s colleague Rich Cimini notes some observers agree that is the route the team will take, although others point to Glenn as the “best fit” for their current vacancy. He has been an NFL staffer since 2014, including four years in his current post as the leader of Detroit’s defense.

Of course, Glenn’s first coordinator gig was preceded by a five-year run in the Saints’ organization. He worked as New Orleans’ defensive backs coach during that span, and a return to the city to replace Dennis Allen remains a possibility to watch for. A recent report suggest Glenn could be the leading candidate for the Saints, one of the teams which has kept an eye out for the potential of Mike McCarthy reaching the open market.

McCarthy and the Cowboys are negotiating a new deal, though, and it remains to be seen if his existing contract will expire without a new agreement being in place (or at least imminent). Provide McCarthy winds up being unavailable, the Saints could move quickly in arranging a second interview with Glenn. The Jets will also be worth watching on that front.

Jayden Daniels’ Presence Could Dissuade Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury From Taking HC Job

Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury is once again a prominent name in head coaching rumors, thanks in large part to the work he has done with Washington’s rookie phenom, Jayden Daniels. The presence of the young passer could compel Kingsbury to remain in the nation’s capital and to eschew possible HC opportunities.

When asked earlier this month if he was ready to field questions related to his head coaching candidacy, Kingsbury smiled and said, “it would take a lot to leave this kid” (via ESPN’s John Keim). Of course, the “kid” in question is Daniels, who was effusive in his praise for his OC.

He’s meant a lot, obviously, for my development and my growth from the day I stepped foot here to this point now,” Daniels said. “Just to be able to see and get to learn the type of person Kliff is on and off the field, it’s only helped our relationship grow.”

Keim’s expansive piece is well-worth a read for Commanders fans in particular, and in it, Kingsbury offers a few candid remarks as to why his first head coaching job with the Cardinals went south. He also says that working under Washington HC Dan Quinn has driven home the lessons he learned from his struggles in the desert.

“I don’t think I set the foundation [in Arizona] the way I would do it after watching [Quinn] and how he set the foundation from day one,” Kingsbury said. “These are the standards, this is what we want, this is what we’re going to be. I definitely could have done a better job of that.”

Following his Arizona ouster, Kingsbury travelled for several months and realized that, despite the struggles he endured at the end of his Cardinals tenure, he wanted to return to football. He served as a senior offensive analyst at the college level for USC in 2023 before accepting the Commanders’ OC gig this past offseason.

As Keim observes, Kingsbury’s role allows him to focus on running an offense and building a relationship with players, which are the aspects of the coaching profession that he enjoys the most. And the success that he and the club have had in the first year of the Daniels era – Washington posted a 12-5 record and qualified for the postseason – have led some to wonder whether he would want to dive back into the head coaching ranks so soon.

Indeed, reports from earlier this month suggested that, while Kingsbury does want to be a head coach again at some point, he may not be in a rush to leave his current position. And subsequent reporting noted that HC-needy clubs were gauging just how much interest Kingsbury has in accepting a new top job in this year’s cycle.

The Bears and Saints nonetheless submitted interview requests for Kingsbury, who has reportedly received interest from at least two other clubs. Per Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, Kingsbury will move forward with the Chicago and New Orleans interviews this week (video link).

The Chicago post in particular has been rumored as a logical one for Kingsbury, as his one season at USC doubled as Caleb Williams’ final year at the school, and the two built a solid relationship during that time. Naturally, one of the Bears’ top priorities moving forward will be coaxing high-end production out of Williams, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 draft.

Even if the Bears, Saints, or some other team were to extend an offer, it is far from certain that Kingsbury would accept it. Like Lions OC Ben Johnson, whose performance over his time in Detroit has allowed him to be highly selective as to if and when he accepts an HC offer, Kingsbury is in a comfortable situation that has allowed him to rebuild his stock in a short amount of time. With Daniels looking every bit like the franchise passer Washington has sought for so long, the 45-year-old coach seemingly feels no pressure to leave his young protégé.

2025 NFL Cap Carryover, By Team

With the regular season in the books, all NFL teams have declared their cap carryover for the 2025 league year. Unused cap space from the current campaign will roll over, a substantial element of many teams’ financial planning.

Last offseason saw a record-breaking jump in the salary cap ceiling (pushing the upper limit to $255.4MM). To no surprise, another spike is expected but a smaller year-to-year increase is likely to take place. It was learned last month that teams are preparing for the 2025 cap to check in at a figure between $265MM-$275MM.

As teams evaluate key roster-building decisions – including restructures and cuts aimed at manufacturing cap space – carryovers are crucial. It it still not known what exactly the cap ceiling will wind up as, but in the meantime every club’s space which has been rolled over will add a degree of clarity with respect to how their offseason will take shape. Several teams (including the top two on this year’s list) have made a concerted effort in recent years to carry unused space through the course of a campaign knowing a spike in cap charges for core players are forthcoming.

Courtesy of Over the Cap, here is the full breakdown of each team’s 2025 cap carryover amount:

  • San Francisco 49ers: $50.01MM
  • Cleveland Browns: $41.95MM
  • New England Patriots: $34.86MM
  • Las Vegas Raiders: $33.57MM
  • Detroit Lions: $23.73MM
  • Washington Commanders: $19.83MM
  • Dallas Cowboys: $18.84MM
  • Jacksonville Jaguars: $15.89MM
  • Green Bay Packers: $15.11MM
  • Tennessee Titans: $14.72MM
  • Arizona Cardinals: $11.38MM
  • Indianapolis Colts: $10.1MM
  • Seattle Seahawks: $8.42MM
  • Pittsburgh Steelers: $6.83MM
  • Philadelphia Eagles: $6.81MM
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $6.63MM
  • Atlanta Falcons: $6.07MM
  • Minnesota Vikings: $5.94MM
  • Cincinnati Bengals: $5.94MM
  • Chicago Bears: $5.08MM
  • Los Angeles Chargers: $4.89MM
  • Houston Texans: $4.81MM
  • Kansas City Chiefs: $3.15MM
  • Miami Dolphins: $3MM
  • New Orleans Saints: $2.93MM
  • Los Angeles Rams: $2.75MM
  • Baltimore Ravens: $2.14MM
  • Denver Broncos: $1.91MM
  • Buffalo Bills: $1.34MM
  • New York Giants: $1.17MM
  • Carolina Panthers: $490K
  • New York Jets: $346K

Seahawks Request OC Interview With Saints’ Klint Kubiak

The Seahawks quickly kicked off their search for a new offensive coordinator, as the team has already set up interviews with Thomas Brown and Hank Fraley. We’ve got another candidate for the job, as ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that the Seahawks have requested permission to interview Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak for the same role.

Kubiak joined New Orleans’ staff last offseason and had to endure a season where the Saints turned to three different starting QBs. Derek Carr went 5-5 as a starter and tossed 15 touchdowns vs. five interceptions, but the team was otherwise winless with Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener under center. Further, Alvin Kamara was the only player to top 600 yards from scrimmage (the RB finished with 1,493). Still, the Saints offense was more middle-of-the-road than bottom-of-the-pack, solidifying Kubiak’s place as one of the more intriguing offensive minds in the game. Fowler notes that beyond Seattle, Kubiak could be an option for the Browns offensive coordinator vacancy.

The son of Gary Kubiak, Klint got his NFL coaching start working under his father in Denver. When Gary was named assistant head coach in Minnesota, Klint caught on as the team’s QBs coach, and he succeeded his dad as offensive coordinator in 2021. The Vikings cleared house following Mike Zimmer‘s firing, and Klint landed back in Denver, where he spent a year as the passing game coordinator/quarterbacks coach. Following that one-year stop, he worked as Kyle Shanahan‘s passing game coordinator in San Francisco.

While this would represent a lateral move for Kubiak, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald believes the Seattle gig is plenty enticing. Macdonald recently touted the opening, highlighting the team’s list of young offensive players. While the organization doesn’t currently have a long-term plan at QB, they’re positioned to bring back a steady veteran in Geno Smith.

The Seahawks made Ryan Grubb a one-and-done OC, with the team’s drop in rushing efficiency reportedly playing a role in his demise. After poaching Grubb from Alabama’s staff, it’s been thought that Macdonald may pivot to a more experienced option to help guide the offense in 2025.

Mike McCarthy Connected To Saints’ HC Job; Aaron Glenn Holding Early Lead?

Mike McCarthy resides in the unique position of being under contract for a team at season’s end but not tied to that club for the ensuing season. The Cowboys constructed his deal to expire Jan. 14. Not giving their five-year HC an extension despite three straight 12-win seasons, the Cowboys have five days to extend him.

The sides are still talking, and a decent chance exists McCarthy is back in Dallas on a second contract. But that is not a lock. The Bears attempted to test the Cowboys on this front by sending a McCarthy interview request; Dallas blocked it. The NFC East team will not be able to block any such overtures after Tuesday; no deal being done by then would send McCarthy to the market and create one of the more interesting scenarios we have seen on a coaching carousel.

If McCarthy reaches the market, the Saints could emerge as an option. While the Bears would conceivably be back in play, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler indicates McCarthy could have some interest in the New Orleans position. McCarthy has a past with the organization, having been the Saints’ offensive coordinator from 2000-04.

That marked McCarthy’s first OC job, and it started off well. Despite losing starter Jeff Blake to injury during the 2000 season, the Saints rallied to the playoffs behind second-year QB Aaron Brooks. The team then notched its elusive first playoff win, over the defending champion Rams. New Orleans, however, did not make the playoffs again during Jim Haslett‘s tenure. The Saints did still rank in the top 14 offensively in each McCarthy season. By 2005, McCarthy was in San Francisco as 49ers OC, using that perch to land the Packers’ HC job in 2006.

The GM during part of McCarthy’s Saints stint remains, and Mickey Loomis has been connected to prioritizing familiarity. Aaron Glenn came up as a candidate last month, and he joins fellow ex-Saints assistant Joe Brady on the team’s interview list. This McCarthy tie also follows a report that had the Saints content with their current list of candidates. McCarthy, 61, could certainly be added if his Cowboys contract expires without a new deal in place.

Going into the first round of interviews, though, Fowler adds that Glenn may have the early lead. It would not be surprising to see the four-year Lions DC land this job. He was a candidate in 2022 despite the Lions having finished 3-13-1 in ’21. Glenn coached the Saints’ DBs for five seasons under Sean Payton, working under Loomis, who is running this search.

The Lions have also become one of the league’s premier success stories in recent memory, completing a rebuild that has since produced 13-4 and 15-2 records. Glenn’s defense also closed the regular season with a statement, holding the high-octane Vikings attack to nine points despite missing a few key cogs.

Glenn, 52, is set to meet with four other teams — the Bears, Jaguars, Jets and Raiders — between now and Saturday. His Saints virtual interview is scheduled for Friday. More updates will emerge in connection with the New Orleans job, but given Glenn’s ties to the team and his decision to decline a Patriots interview request, the veteran assistant may be close to nailing down a job after a few years of trying.

Courtesy of PFR’s Head Coaching Search Tracker, here is how the Saints’ HC search looks:

Kliff Kingsbury Receives HC Interview Requests From Bears, Saints

It seemed inevitable Kliff Kingsbury would move onto this year’s HC carousel. As Jayden Daniels appears weeks from an Offensive Rookie of the Year honor, the Commanders’ play-caller indeed will be summoned for interviews.

A Wednesday report pegged at least four teams as showing interest in Kingsbury for the position, and Bovada’s Josina Anderson reports the Bears and Saints have submitted official request to meet with him.

[RELATED: 2025 NFL Head Coaching Search Tracker]

A Bears meeting has been expected for a bit, and it will be rather interesting given the parties’ 2024 connection. The Bears met with Kingsbury about their OC job last year, only to hire Shane Waldron. The Kingsbury meeting also was interpreted as more fact-finding mission about Caleb Williams — whom Kingsbury coached during a 2023 stopover at USC — than true interview for the then-vacant coordinator post. Kingsbury’s stock has climbed since that meeting, and he will meet with Bears brass about their top coaching post.

The Saints have no ties to Kingsbury, which separates his candidacy from the likes of Aaron Glenn or Joe Brady, and they do not have a young quarterback like the HC-needy Bears or Jaguars do. The Saints’ perennially poor cap position also could be an issue for high-end HC candidates. Jacksonville has come up as a stealth Kingsbury suitor, and the AFC South team’s interest may become official soon. But New Orleans is hoping to speak with Kingsbury, 45, soon. Derek Carr is in line to come back for his age-34 season, and the team would be interested in hearing how the middling passer can launch a late-career surge.

While Bo Nix‘s strong season had threatened Daniels’ grip on the Offensive Rookie of the Year award for a stretch, the No. 2 overall pick closed the show in a manner that left little doubt about the outcome. The 2023 Heisman winner powered a rebuilding Commanders team to a 12-5 record, combining 3,568 passing yards with 891 on the ground. Daniels finished with 31 total touchdowns (six rushing) and placed fourth in regular-season QBR.

Daniels’ rapid ascent will give Kingsbury tremendous momentum, to the point the former Cardinals HC — fired months after signing an Arizona extension — could potentially be patient in Ben Johnson fashion. But Kingsbury’s Williams tie could prove important re: the Chicago job soon.

Coaching Rumors: Seahawks, Vrabel, Getsy, Saints, Slowik, Harbaugh

The Seahawks are not set to clean house on offense, but they are not considering anyone from Ryan Grubb‘s staff to be their next OC after making Grubb an one-and-done. Mike Macdonald confirmed as much (via the Seattle Times’ Bob Condotta), while praising the team’s young core in hyping up the job. Although the Seahawks are only preparing to look outside the organization for help, Macdonald added (via ESPN.com’s Brady Henderson) play-calling experience will not be required. This is not too uncommon, as teams regularly hire quarterbacks coaches or pass-game coordinators to be OCs. Those roles generally do not feature play-calling duties. The team has already put in interview requests, per Macdonald, though no names have surfaced yet. Additionally, Macdonald said (via Condotta) the new hire, as could be expected, will not be forced to retain all of Grubb’s staff. More changes should be expected.

Here is the latest from the coaching ranks:

  • Mike Vrabel looks to have a much better chance of landing a job this year compared to 2024, though he did interview with a few teams following his surprising Titans ouster. One of those meetings came with the Panthers, who were coming off a 2-15 season. As Vrabel did not view himself as a strong candidate to land the Falcons’ job, The Athletic’s Zack Rosenblatt notes that the then-recently fired coach was not interested in the Carolina position (subscription required). David Tepper‘s presence had hurt the perception of the Panthers’ job at that point, as the owner had been accused of meddling in personnel matters — during a second straight season in which he fired a head coach — before throwing a drink on a fan during a late-season game in 2023. Dave Canales took over and is set to begin a second offseason in charge, while Vrabel is viewed as the Patriots’ lead candidate.
  • The Saints do not have as many HC candidates compared to the Bears and Jets, but they do not appear interested in expanding right now. Aaron Glenn, Kellen Moore, Joe Brady, Anthony Weaver, Darren Rizzi, Mike Kafka and Vrabel comprise New Orleans’ current list, and ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler views this as the full group for the foreseeable future.
  • Bobby Slowik appeared on interview lists last year, but the Texans OC’s second season has not gone as well. Only one team, the Jets, has contacted Slowik about an HC interview this year. As the Texans prepare for their playoff matchup with the Chargers, SI.com’s Albert Breer does not tab Slowik as automatic to return for a third season. The former 49ers assistant, after a C.J. Stroud sophomore slump, will likely need to present a plan to DeMeco Ryans to keep the gig — even after the team extended its play-caller last January. That deal came with a significant raise, but Houston’s offense dropped from 12th to 22nd in yardage and 13th to 19th in points.
  • Weeks after Robert Saleh resurfaced with longtime friend Matt LaFleur‘s Packers, the NFC North team rehired one of its former assistants for a similar role. After being canned as Raiders OC, Luke Getsy is helping out the Packers as an advisor, per the Chicago Sun-Times’ Patrick Finley. Getsy had been working remotely for a few weeks. While Saleh has helped Green Bay’s offense with preparation, Getsy — a former Packers QBs coach before his two OC stints elsewhere — had been helping the defense.
  • Jim Harbaugh signed a five-year deal worth $16MM per season last January, and his latest quick-turnaround effort brought additional compensation. The first-year Chargers HC collected a $1MM bonus for guiding the team to the playoffs, ESPN’s Adam Schefter notes.

Saints, Ryan Ramczyk Agree To Restructure

It does not look like a Ryan Ramczyk comeback will commence for the Saints. A serious knee injury remains likely to end the former All-Pro tackle’s career, and some paperwork emerging Wednesday all but confirms it.

The Saints and Ramczyk agreed to a restructure that will save the team more than $16MM in cap space, OverTheCap’s Jason Fitzgerald reports. Ramczyk has agreed to trim his $18MM 2025 base salary down to the $1.26MM veteran minimum (for his service-time number).

This transaction will paves the way for the Saints to designate Ramczyk a post-June 1 cut, Fitzgerald adds. Before this reworking, the Saints would have needed to carry a $29MM cap number on their books until the funds emerged June 2. Sitting well south of every other team in terms of cap space, per usual, the Saints need to make several moves to reach compliance by the start of the 2025 league year. Even with this transaction, New Orleans sits more than $50MM over the NFL’s projected 2025 salary cap.

The post-June 1 cut will allow the Saints to split Ramczyk’s $23.1MM in dead money across two years. New Orleans used its two post-June 1 cut designations in 2024 (on Jameis Winston and Michael Thomas); Ramczyk being one of the team’s two allotted slots this year seems a good bet. Ramczyk had been tied to the five-year, $96MM deal he signed during Sean Payton‘s final offseason in charge (2021).

Although Saints winter restructures are commonplace, this one means more due to what it probably entails for Ramczyk. Part of a 2017 draft class that changed the franchise’s trajectory, Ramczyk arrived in the first round and became an instant starter. This helped Drew Brees remain on the NFL’s top tier at his position into his late 30s. Ramczyk, 30, made three All-Pro squads, including the 2019 first team, and started seven seasons for the Saints.

Late in the 2023 season, Ramczyk was believed to be at a career crossroads due to a troublesome knee injury. The Wisconsin alum ended that season on IR, though he still played 12 games, and hit the Saints’ reserve/PUP list to start training camp last year. That move ended Ramczyk’s season. The Saints used Trevor Penning in all 17 games at right tackle, with the 2022 first-rounder stabilizing his career to a degree after two rocky years. New Orleans drafted Taliese Fuaga to play left tackle.

The Saints still have two Brees-era O-line bastions — Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz — signed to extensions, but Ramczyk is all but certain to move off the team’s roster a year after an Andrus Peat contract reworking led to his exit.