5 more moves that will fix the Saints for 2025 after firing Dennis Allen

The New Orleans Saints fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday, Nov. 4 after the Saints lost to the Carolina Panthers the day before. This marked the Saint's seventh loss of the season in just nine games.

They then made the uninspiring move to promote Assistant Head Coach and Special Teams Coordinator Darren Rizzi to the interim head coaching job — a move that screams a rebuild is coming.

So what's next? How quickly can things turn around for New Orleans? And what does a turnaround look like in 2025 vs looking down the road to the future? There's not a clear path to success for the 2025 season, but there are moves to be made that can fix the Saints for next year that will set them up for years to come.

1. Fire Mickey Loomis

Let me be the first to say: yuck. I NEVER like calling for someone's job. Personally, I think we're all too flippant with the idea of firing someone in this line of work, and too quick to think that it will solve every problem...that being said the Saints should fire Mickey Loomis.

Loomis is the Executive VP and General Manager for the Saints. He's in one way or another responsible for every football move for the organization. Most notably he's the one that works his dark magic over their salary cap every offseason. Restructuring contracts like he's Marshawn Lynch running through "someone's" face.

Loomis has been with the Saints since the year 2000, the GM since 2002, and the Executive VP since 2013. The organizational structure, now that Sean Payton and his disciples are gone, starts and ends with Loomis. If New Orleans truly wants to turn over a new leaf, it starts with letting go of Loomis.

2. Clear the books

Letting go of Loomis will finally pave the way for this team to get their books correct. There are nine players on the roster 29 years or older that have a double-digit cap hit for 2025 that can be moved. Either by trade or release post-June 1 Derek Carr, Alvin Kamara, Marshon Lattimore, Cameron Jordan, Taysom Hill, Demario Davis, Ryan Ramczyk, Tyrann Mathieu, and Carl Anderson can all provide actual cap relief in 2025 by not being on the roster.

The toughest one is Carr, who would have to be traded, not released, post-June 1 to provide any relief to the books. There's a chance a QB-needy team that missed out in the draft and free agency would take a chance, but it's unlikely. So New Orleans may need to stick it out one more year. But all the other names can be moved to create flexibility moving forward.

A couple of other players like Erik McCoy, Cesar Ruiz, and Chase Young also have moveable cap figures, but those players are 28 or younger. And in the case of McCoy and Ruiz, I wouldn't want to go around giving up good offensive linemen in their 20s. Even on a team that will be bad for a couple of seasons.

3. Embrace the tank

Speaking of being bad -— just be bad. Because you already are. What the Saints can't do is use any money or draft picks gained from the above plan and spend on a veteran. And, at least for a season, can't retain, restructure, or extend any current players. The roster needs to play itself out for the next year or two before any real investments are made.

Tanking doesn't have to be putting the worst roster on the field possible in hopes of getting the first-overall pick either. There are a lot of high-pedigree players that would still remain after the moves I suggested. What I'm saying is don't pay an expensive right tackle to play above Trevor Penning next year in the hopes of winning one or two more games. Don't release Cameron Jordan and Carl Granderson just to have someone play over Isaiah Foskey.

What has gotten the Saints in the position they are in is chasing past success. New Orleans hasn't won double-digit games or made the playoffs since 2020. And yet they are always "all-in" from a financial perspective. Instead of making roster investments financially, they should do that elsewhere.

4. Build through the NFL Draft

Ta-Da! Why spend money when you can spend draft picks? It certainly hasn't been the case for this team in the last few years. In the seven drafts since their historic 2017 class, the Saints have only had one class where they:

1. Made a pick in each round of the first two days, and
2. Made at least seven picks

To speak to building through the draft and embracing the tank, a perfect example is CB Paulson Adebo. Adebo is a good player. He was the Saints' own draft pick who has panned out. And he's just 25-years-old. That's a classic re-sign candidate. But New Orleans has to let him walk.

Instead of signing Adebo to a top-20ish cornerback contract, they can rely on last year's draft pick Kool-Aid McKinstry to step up or draft another corner in the first three rounds. Additionally, they can receive a compensatory pick in 2026 by letting Adebo walk and not making any equal or bigger moves.

The best teams build through the draft. This version of the Saints drafted so well several years ago they're still paying for it. It's time to start that cycle over.

5. Hire Ben Johnson

This one is a bit of a stand-in for every team. Of course, everyone wants to hire Ben Johnson this offseason. But Johnson isn't just an excellent candidate for his offensive schemes and playcalling. He also has the human characteristics you look for in a head coach.

Ben Johnson loves the relationship aspect of the job. He's said this to media members and incoming college prospects alike. And he wants to build something that's long-term. He said this over the summer about returning to Detroit.

"Listen, there's a lot of things that go into it, a lot of reasons and dynamics that play a part. Something that really resonates with me is, OK, eight openings this past year. What would you set the over-under (at) in three years? How many still have jobs? I'd put the over-under at 4.5, I would say. I'd say there's a good chance five of them are out of jobs in three years, you know? And so when I look at it from that perspective, if I get the opportunity to go down that road, it's about how do I get to that second contract? How do I set myself up?"

New Orleans can offer something most of the other jobs can't this offseason: a history of patience. Sure, there was a Super Bowl victory in there. But Mickey Loomis has been with the team since 2000. Sean Payton was the team's head coach from 2006-2021. And even Dennis Allen was with the team since 2015.

Johnson and the Saints both believe in stability and a positive environment. The Saints have been stuck in mediocrity for a long time. There's not the rush like in some other places to have a miraculous turnaround. This could be another happy marriage that brings success for both sides.