The divisional round of the NFL playoffs has ended, and that means a few things.
We now know that two of the Chiefs, Commanders, Eagles and Bills will be headed to New Orleans for Super Bowl 58. We also know that a handful of head coaching candidates will be headed here a few weeks earlier to make their case for why they should be the next Saints head coach.
New Orleans had previously conducted several virtual interviews as they cast a net for the next hire, but in-person interviews were prohibited for coaches under contract until Jan. 20th.
Those first two in-person interviews will begin with Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka on Tuesday, followed by Dolphins Defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver on Wednesday, according to reports.
Both candidates are former NFL players on their respective sides of the ball. Kafka's candidacy is somewhat eyebrow-raising considering the state of the Giants offense the past two seasons, but he was a key piece in the 2022 playoff run for New York and was previously the quarterbacks coach and pass game coordinator for the Chiefs and Pat Mahomes. Kafka has been a popular name in heading searches for multiple seasons, and also interviewed virtually for the Bears opening this year. In 2023 Kafka interviewed for head coaching vacancies with the Panthers, Texans and Colts, and was called back for a second interview with the Texans and Cardinals, jobs that ultimately went to DeMeco Ryans and Jonathan Gannon, respectively. This past season Kafka interviewed for both the Titans and Seahawks vacancies. He'll be one of the head coaches at the Senior Bowl in February.
Weaver, a former 2nd round pick out of Notre Dame as a linebacker, has a host of coaching stints that include the assistant head coach and defensive line coach role for the Baltimore Ravens prior to joining the Dolphins this past season. He interviewed for the head coach role for both the Falcons and Commanders ahead of the 2024 season.
Next up is expected to be Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, who is first expected to visit the Jets, per reports. Glenn has long been considered one of the top targets for both teams. All three coaches previously went through virtual interviews with New Orleans. The Saints have also completed an in-person interview with interim head coach Darren Rizzi to potentially stay on full-time in that capacity.
The Saints have also had virtual interviews with Eagles OC Kellen Moore and Bills OC Joe Brady. Both coaches' teams are still alive in the postseason and would likely be available to interview after their respective conference championship games.
The Saints have also requested an interview with Commanders OC Kliff Kingsbury and are expected to be in the mix for former Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, though neither has come to fruition as of 10 a.m. Monday. Kingsbury has previously stated that he will hold off on head coaching opportunities until after the postseason.
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In-person interviews are a far more intensive and in-depth part of the coaching search process, and would typically qualify someone to be considered a finalist for a particular role. Interviews will last longer -- virtual interviews have to be capped at 3 hours per NFL rules -- and will go more in depth on specific plans for the team and organization.
"I feel like the Zoom calls that we’ve done have been pretty good, but we’re … not asking coaches to study and know our roster inside and out, you know, they’ve got jobs to do," Loomis said earlier this offseason. "They’re in season, so we’re not asking them to do those sorts of things and those kinds of discussions that we would have in an in-depth, in-person interview.”
The Saints are looking to hire their second coach in three years after a 15-year run with Sean Payton at the helm. That time they went with Dennis Allen and continuity, keeping a majority of the prior staff. This time around Loomis has made clear the incoming head coach will be allowed to build his own staff. Current Saints OC Klint Kubiak has had multiple interviews with the Seahawks, though no hire has been made. Rizzi has also interviewed for the Jets head coaching vacancy.