Report: Saints Name Ryan Nielsen and Kris Richard as Co-Defensive Coordinators

New Orleans Saints assistant coach Ryan Nielsen has agreed to a 2-year contract with the team to become co-defensive coordinator.

Nielsen will share defensive coordinator duties with Kris Richard, formerly the defensive backs coach. The news was reported by Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.

The Saints previous defensive coordinator was Dennis Allen, who held the title since 2015. Allen was promoted to head coach after Sean Payton stepped down from his 16-year tenure with the franchise.

Nielsen, 42, has been the Saints defensive line coach since 2017. He had previously been a defensive assistant at N.C. State and had never had an assistant position at the NFL level.

Nielsen has been credited with the development of unheralded defensive tackles David Onyemata and Shy Tuttle along with DE Carl Granderson.

The Saints have held a top-five ranking in run defense in each of the last four seasons. They've also had one of the league's most disruptive defensive lines against the pass.

Richard, also 42, has a more extensive NFL resume'. He was the defensive backs coach for the Seattle Seahawks and one of the NFL's best secondaries from 2010 to 2014. Seattle promoted Richard to defensive coordinator in 2015, a role he held for three seasons.

Richard joined the Dallas Cowboys as a defensive assistant in 2018. He'd leave there after the 2019 season following the firing of head coach Jason Garrett. Richard was given the job of defensive backs coach with the Saints last season, replacing the departed Aaron Glenn.

The development of rookie CB Paulson Adebo, a third-round pick, can be attributed to Richard. The Saints intercepted 18 passes in 2021 and held seven of their last nine opponents to under 200 yards passing.

Dennis Allen has announced that he will continue to make most of the defensive calls on game days. Allen, Nielsen, and Richard helped New Orleans rank near the top of the NFL in most defensive categories in 2021.

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