How Darren Rizzi compares to previous Saints’ interim head coaches

It might be better than you think.

Ernie Hefferle. Wade Phillips. Rick Venturi. What do those names have in common? They’re all the previous interim head coaches of the New Orleans Saints.

None of them were able to get the job for a full season, and interim head coach Darren Rizzi might soon be joining the group. But, he’s already managed to set himself apart from the interim coaches of the Saints past.

It might not seem like much, especially with how this season has felt, but winning is the main thing that has set him apart from the others. Hefferle went 1-7, Phillips went 1-3, and Venturi went 1-7. Rizzi, with three games left to go, has so far gone 3-2.

Mathematically, the Saints aren’t even eliminated from playoff contention just yet. And that is something that the other coaches couldn't even dream about.

But what is also important is that he’s given the team a new life. Under Dennis Allen, who was let go after the Week 9 loss to the Carolina Panthers, the New Orleans Saints had become stale and dull. In meetings with media, players just seem rejuvenated and more hopeful than ever before.

His next test will be on Monday night in Green Bay, in a road matchup against the Green Bay Packers.