Report: Saints eyeing Chiefs OC for head coach opening

By Ross Jackson

NEW ORLEANS — With the final week of the 2024 NFL season here, rumors around and movement within the New Orleans Saints’ head coaching search are already starting to heat up.

The latest comes from The Athletic’s senior NFL insider Dianna Russini, who names several candidates she expects the Saints to be in on including one surprise name.

Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy isn’t a name often heard within head coaching searches nowadays. But that may change when it comes to New Orleans.

“Expect the Saints to show interest in former Bears head coach and current Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy,” Russini wrote in her most recent coaching buzz report (subscription required).

Nagy, brother of Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy, is currently in the midst of a 15-1 season in his second stint as the Chiefs’ offensive coordinator. He held the same position with Kansas City back in 2016-2017 before leaving to become the head coach of the Chicago Bears.

With the Bears, Nagy was named NFL Coach of the Year in 2018 after leading the team to a 12-4 record and a playoff appearance. 

However, after that 12-4 season and the departure of defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, things quickly turned south for Nagy. Over the remainder of his tenure as the Chicago head coach, Nagy went just 22-27. He was a noted culture builder, but couldn’t find ways to consistently translate that culture to success on the football field after the 2018 season.

After he was fired by the Bears, Rick Morrissey of the Chicago Sun-Time wrote, “the Bears fell in love with a person, not a football coach.” A large criticism was his offensive scheme. It’s fair to consider that a team like the Saints wouldn’t mind having Nagy as a culture-builder and leader while retaining offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to run the offense.

Similarly, perhaps Nagy’s offensive scheme and approach to the game have changes after more years under Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, something the Saints will look to find out if they are indeed interested and conduct an interview with him. New Orleans can interview him virtually between Wednesday, Jan. 8 and Monday, Jan. 13. The team could then interview him in person once the Chiefs are either eliminated from the playoffs or following a Super Bowl victory here in New Orleans. 

Russini mentioned three other names to keep an eye on for the Saints. She believes that former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel will likely interview with the Saints (and the Bears)  next week after interviewing with the New York Jets on Friday. She also mentioned that interim head coach Darren Rizzi is still a viable candidate, something that the rest of the Saints coaching staff and players have spoken of in favor. Finally, Russini also dropped a hint about Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, should he become available. 

“The team could also look at McCarthy if he becomes available,” she wrote. McCarthy’s deal with the Cowboys is set to expire on Tuesday, Jan. 14.The date is set for nine days after the regular season, giving the Cowboys about a week and a half to deny other teams the opportunity to interview McCarthy if the team’s owner Jerry Jones would like to try to work something out. Otherwise, McCarthy would be free to explore additional opportunities, New Orleans included.