NEW ORLEANS — The Saints will introduce Dennis Allen as the team's new head coach at a press conference at the team facility Tuesday at 2:30 p.m.
Allen has led the team's defensive surge the past few seasons, and led the team during a noteworthy 9-0 win over Tom Brady and the defending Super Bowl champs in Tampa earlier this season while former head coach Sean Payton was out due to COVID protocols.
Saints general manager Mickey Loomis says it is "correct to assume" the Saints don't view their impending hiring of a new coach "as a wholesale culture change, roster change," or "anything like that." Loomis said that the Saints have "a lot of good things" in place. The hiring of Allen seems to be a testament to that, as it seems likely Allen will try to keep many of the successful elements of the team together.
Allen takes the reigns of a Saints team that has not had a losing season since the 2016 season. This will be Allen's second opportunity as an NFL head coach. Allen was hired to coach the then-Oakland Raiders is 2012, before being fired four games into the 2014 season after an 0-4 start. Allen currently holds an 8-28 record as an NFL head coach, although it is worth noting the Raiders were in a full rebuild during the time of his tenure.
Allen is replacing long-time head coach Sean Payton, who stepped down after a 16-year tenure with the team which included its only Super Bowl championship. Payton left the team with a 152-89 regular season record, which included nine playoff appearances in 15 seasons.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
