Saints' Dennis Allen, Coaches Should Be Under the Microscope

AsylumGuido · 10-11-2022, 02:45 PM

Saints' Dennis Allen, Coaches Should Be Under the Microscope

New Orleans coach Dennis Allen and his staff have had an up-and-down start to 2022. Here's how they've fared so far and why we should be encouraged as the Saints enter a pivotal stretch of the season.

BOB ROSE 1 HOUR AGO

Coach Matt Rhule was fired by the Carolina Panthers on Monday. The Panthers had a 10-23 record in two full seasons with Rhule and was 1-4 this year before the move. Rhule is the first NFL coach to be fired this year, but Carolina may not be the only team to make an in-season move.

Nathaniel Hackett, in only his first season with the Denver Broncos, is already under heavy fire from the media and fans for an inept offense. There are some rumors swirling around Arizona’s Kliff Kingsbury and Frank Reich of the Colts after slow starts, despite previous success with their teams.

Mike McCarthy of Dallas, Brandon Staley of the Chargers, and Tennessee’s Mike Vrabel entered the year under criticism but have gotten off to solid starts. Teams like Jacksonville, the Jets, Cleveland, and Washington have traditionally lost patience with coaches quickly.

This is not to suggest that any of these coaches are going to be fired during the season. However,with the impatience of today’s NFL, some of these first-year coaches may even be cut loose after an unsuccessful inaugural season. None of these coaches even had the daunting task that was facing Dennis Allen of the New Orleans Saints.

Allen, 50, replaced a potential Hall of Famer when Sean Payton stepped down in January. This is Allen’s second stint as a head coach. He coached the Oakland Raiders from 2012 to early 2014 before getting fired with an 8-28 record. Since then, Allen had been Payton's defensive coordinator, returning to a Saints organization where he’d been defensive backs coach from 2006 to 2010.

Allen also served as head coach during a 9-0 win at Tampa Bay in 2021 while Payton was sidelined with Covid. He’d come into 2022 with an experienced coaching staff that included offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael, offensive line coach Doug Marrone, and co-defensive coordinators Kris Richard and Ryan Nielsen.

Despite Allen’s organizational skills and continuity on the staff, the Saints have gotten off to a rocky start to the year.

Slow Starts/Motivation

New Orleans has scored just twice on their opening drives this season and have been outscored, 30-10, in the first quarter. They've been outscored 48-34 in the first half, with their 17 first half points against Seattle on Sunday matching their entire opening half total through the first four games. New Orleans has trailed in all but one game this season when they've come out for third quarter action.

The Saints were outplayed for three quarters by a vastly inferior Atlanta team on opening week and for the entire game by an equally inferior Panthers squad in week three.

Even after spending the entire week in London, New Orleans looked lethargic and unmotivated in the opening quarter against Minnesota in week four before outplaying the Vikings over the final three quarters.

Discipline/Sloppy Play

New Orleans leads the NFL in penalty yardage and ranks next-to-last in number of penalties. The Saints also lead the league with 13 turnovers committed. Two of those were returned for touchdowns, with several others either stopping sure scoring drives or setting up opponents for easy scores.

Team composure crumbled after a week 2 brawl against Tampa Bay resulted in CB Marshon Lattimore getting ejected. The Buccaneers outscored the Saints 17-7 after the fourth quarter incident on their way to a 20-10 win. The team’s coaching and veteran leadership failed to keep the squad focused, leading to a late meltdown.

Untimely penalties have pushed the Saints out of potential field goals several times this season. The avalanche of turnovers has not only destroyed momentum, but forced the Saints into desperate play in four different games while trying to come from behind.

Game Plans/Adjustments

Read the rest here ...

10-11-2022, 02:45 PM	#1
AsylumGuido 10000 POST CLUB Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Bossier City, LA Posts: 26,492	Saints' Dennis Allen, Coaches Should Be Under the Microscope Saints' Dennis Allen, Coaches Should Be Under the Microscope New Orleans coach Dennis Allen and his staff have had an up-and-down start to 2022. Here's how they've fared so far and why we should be encouraged as the Saints enter a pivotal stretch of the season. BOB ROSE 1 HOUR AGO Coach Matt Rhule was fired by the Carolina Panthers on Monday. The Panthers had a 10-23 record in two full seasons with Rhule and was 1-4 this year before the move. Rhule is the first NFL coach to be fired this year, but Carolina may not be the only team to make an in-season move. Nathaniel Hackett, in only his first season with the Denver Broncos, is already under heavy fire from the media and fans for an inept offense. There are some rumors swirling around Arizona’s Kliff Kingsbury and Frank Reich of the Colts after slow starts, despite previous success with their teams. Mike McCarthy of Dallas, Brandon Staley of the Chargers, and Tennessee’s Mike Vrabel entered the year under criticism but have gotten off to solid starts. Teams like Jacksonville, the Jets, Cleveland, and Washington have traditionally lost patience with coaches quickly. This is not to suggest that any of these coaches are going to be fired during the season. However,with the impatience of today’s NFL, some of these first-year coaches may even be cut loose after an unsuccessful inaugural season. None of these coaches even had the daunting task that was facing Dennis Allen of the New Orleans Saints. Allen, 50, replaced a potential Hall of Famer when Sean Payton stepped down in January. This is Allen’s second stint as a head coach. He coached the Oakland Raiders from 2012 to early 2014 before getting fired with an 8-28 record. Since then, Allen had been Payton's defensive coordinator, returning to a Saints organization where he’d been defensive backs coach from 2006 to 2010. Allen also served as head coach during a 9-0 win at Tampa Bay in 2021 while Payton was sidelined with Covid. He’d come into 2022 with an experienced coaching staff that included offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael, offensive line coach Doug Marrone, and co-defensive coordinators Kris Richard and Ryan Nielsen. Despite Allen’s organizational skills and continuity on the staff, the Saints have gotten off to a rocky start to the year. Slow Starts/Motivation New Orleans has scored just twice on their opening drives this season and have been outscored, 30-10, in the first quarter. They've been outscored 48-34 in the first half, with their 17 first half points against Seattle on Sunday matching their entire opening half total through the first four games. New Orleans has trailed in all but one game this season when they've come out for third quarter action. The Saints were outplayed for three quarters by a vastly inferior Atlanta team on opening week and for the entire game by an equally inferior Panthers squad in week three. Even after spending the entire week in London, New Orleans looked lethargic and unmotivated in the opening quarter against Minnesota in week four before outplaying the Vikings over the final three quarters. Discipline/Sloppy Play New Orleans leads the NFL in penalty yardage and ranks next-to-last in number of penalties. The Saints also lead the league with 13 turnovers committed. Two of those were returned for touchdowns, with several others either stopping sure scoring drives or setting up opponents for easy scores. Team composure crumbled after a week 2 brawl against Tampa Bay resulted in CB Marshon Lattimore getting ejected. The Buccaneers outscored the Saints 17-7 after the fourth quarter incident on their way to a 20-10 win. The team’s coaching and veteran leadership failed to keep the squad focused, leading to a late meltdown. Untimely penalties have pushed the Saints out of potential field goals several times this season. The avalanche of turnovers has not only destroyed momentum, but forced the Saints into desperate play in four different games while trying to come from behind. Game Plans/Adjustments Read the rest here ...
	“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill