You could say it all depends upon how one defines “Sad times”. If you want to say it’s keeping your team from sucking then let’s take a look.

Since 2000 the Saints have had only 1 season with fewer than 7 wins…a 3 win season when Katrina hit. Let’s do some comparisons. During that same time….

KC has two 2 win seasons and two 4 win seasons

Baltimore..two 5 and one 6

Green Bay…one 4 and two 6

Buffalo…one 3,4, and 5 along with multiple 6s.

SF has two 2s. Two 4s and a 5.

Pittsburg has one 6 win. Otherwise they have been very good with their next lowest total wins a season going to 2000 is four 8 win seasons.

Patriots are clearly the best and have outperformed all teams by this matrix, but even Bill B only managed 5 wins his first year coaching the Pats in 2000. So Allen did better his first year coaching the Saints.

So pointing to teams like Browns, Jags, Jets, Detroit and Houston seem like they have had hard times to me. Yes, some of these teams might seem like they are poised to succeed in the near future. But time will tell and they have had to go through many worse seasons than what the Saints put on the field last year to get to the point they are now.