Dennis Allen calls out the Saints for his own transgressions
The New Orleans Saints' tailspin hit a new low on Sunday, as the team got run out of its own building i the second half of a 51-27 loss to the division-rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers. New Orleans' defense allowed nearly 600 yards of total offense and over eight yards per play, as Baker Mayfield threw for 325 yards and two different Bucs running backs ran for more than 80. It was the worst possible game script for rookie QB Spencer Rattler in his first NFL start, and while the Saints' offense was able to keep pace for a half, they were outscored 27-0 over the final two quarters.
The loss is New Orleans' fourth in a row after that promising 2-0 start, and it drops the team to third in the NFC South, ahead of only the lowly Panthers. It's tough to feel much worse as a Saints fan right now ... until you realize that your head coach, Dennis Allen, got the job in the first place because of his supposed prowess as a defensive coordinator. And based on his postgame comments, he doesn't have a ton of answers right now.
Dennis Allen should be pointing the finger at himself after embarrassing Saints loss vs. Bucs
Granted, there are no great answers when your team gives up a 50-burger at home to a division rival. But you'd like the response to be something a bit more inspiring than what Allen offered up:
Saints coach Dennis Allen:
— Mike Triplett (@MikeTriplett) October 13, 2024
“Thoroughly disappointed in the game. It was not acceptable. It was not good enough from a coaching standpoint, was not good enough from a playing standpoint.”
Said the biggest thing of all was: “I thought our tackling was atrocious in the game.”
"I thought our tackling was atrocious" is like taking a cake out of the oven only to realize you swapped the sugar for salt: This is the foundation of every successful defense, the thing that you're supposed to be nailing down in OTAs and the early days of training camp. That we're now in Week 6, and New Orleans is still having tackling issues? That feels like a systemic problem, one that Allen can't be trusted to fix — because if he knew how, the Saints probably wouldn't be in this predicament in the first place.
Allen did pay lip service to holding himself and his coaching staff accountable, but really, the buck stops with him after a loss like this; he should be entirely focused on where he's gone wrong during this losing streak, and what he can do to right the ship. New Orleans' roster certainly isn't bereft of talent; if players are missing tackles, that's a reflection of their coaching, and it'll require some brutal honesty to turn this sinking ship around.
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