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"It's a small league, and there aren't many secrets. His reputation has grown, and the word has gotten around. You can see it on film," Payton said. "He's extremely talented, and another thing about him, he's an extremely hard-working guy. He's a guy that's gonna have more of these opportunities down the line (if he isn't hired this time around)."

Allen is scheduled to interview with both the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles for their coordinator vacancies this weekend.

Teams aren't required to allow their assistants to interview for coordinator positions, and some teams choose to deny such requests. But Payton said he and General Manager Mickey Loomis believe in giving their assistants the chance to leave for "true" promotions such as this. The Saints previously lost offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Doug Marrone when he became head coach at Syracuse late in the 2008 season.

"It's always a tough thing, wanting your coaches to have the opportunity but not wanting to lose them," said Payton, who is close friends with new Broncos coach John Fox - a good and bad thing in this case. "This experience of going through the interview process and getting his name out there is deserved. He's done a very good job. He's extremely well thought of within this building."

Although Allen, 38, is relatively young and inexperienced in the NFL coaching ranks, Payton said he has the kind of leadership skills and presence that will make him stand out in such interviews, as well as the right skill set.

Read the rest of the Story:

New Orleans Saints Coach Sean Payton sings praises of secondary coach Dennis Allen | NOLA.com

niteadept

Nice to see SP believing in others enough to let them move on if needed. Saints are CLASS!

saintfan

In his PC after the playoff loss (the following week) when GW was still scheduled to interview for the Denver job, Sean indicated he didn't want to lose anyone but that he'd do everything he could to help those on his staff move onward and upward whenever they had the opportunity. He reasoned that his people getting opportunities was an indication that he was hiring the right people to being with.

I'll tell you all, Sean and Drew have brought a level of class and professionalism to our organization that we (and most other teams) have never experienced. I know I don't have to tell any of you just how fortunate we are.

C'mon Man...