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When Bradford Banta learned the New Orleans Saints were looking for a special teams coordinator in January, he made a few calls to ensure he would receive an interview for the opening.

A Baton Rouge native, Banta had coached for two other NFL teams since 2008, Detroit and Washington, but hoped to land an opportunity with the team for which he cheered as a child.

Sure enough, Banta nailed the interview and landed the job, giving him a chance to move his family back to Louisiana and closer to his parents. NFL coaches are regularly on the move, but New Orleans was an easy sell for Banta's family because of his roots.

"This will be the first time that they've lived truly south," Banta said of his family. "We'd come back and visit mom and dad every now and then, and (my children) understand the heat, but the first couple days they were here, they were like, 'Dad, it's hot.' I'm like, 'Well, get used to it.'"



And just three days into training camp, it's clear that Banta has plenty of ideas about how to help the Saints' special teams unit improve after a rough performance in 2016.

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