Who is Darren Rizzi? Meet Saints interim head coach taking over for fired Dennis Allen

The New Orleans Saints have appointed Darren Rizzi as their interim head coach on Monday. The Saints fired Dennis Allen after they suffered their seventh consecutive loss of the 2024 NFL season.

Rizzi will now take charge while they assess their options for a new head coach. Let's take a look at Darren Rizzi's career and what he can bring to the embattled franchise for the foreseeable future.

Who is Darren Rizzi?

Darren Rizzi is an experienced football coach specializing in special teams. He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant with the Colgate Raiders. He spent a year with the program before taking up the special teams coordinator and defensive line coach roles at New Haven University.

Darren Rizzi rose the ranks at New Haven and became the team's defensive coordinator before he decided to take his talents to Northeastern. He served as the special teams coordinator and linebackers coach with the Huskies. However, he only stayed with the program for a year as he was appointed the head coach of New Haven in 1999.

Rizzi stayed with the Chargers until 2001. After he left, he took on roles with Rutgers and Rhode Island before finally taking his talents to the NFL as he was hired as the special teams coordinator of the Miami Dolphins.

Rizzi remained with the Dolphins from 2010 until 2018, surviving numerous coaching changes along the way. However, he left the role during Brian Flores' appointment.

The special teams guru wasn't out of a job for long. In 2019, the Saints hired him as their special teams coordinator. He has occupied numerous roles in New Orleans and will now get the chance to audition for the full-time head coach job.

How have the New Orleans Saints performed in 2024?

The New Orleans Saints have been disappointing in the 2024 NFL season. They started the season with wins over the Carolina Panthers and Dallas Cowboys but have not won a game since.

The close loss to the Panthers in Week 9 was the last straw as the front office pulled the plug on the Dennis Allen era. The front office hopes that the interim coaching change can galvanize the team ahead of a crucial second half of the season.