Working under special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi, the New Orleans Saints have fielded one of the NFL’s best special teams units in recent years. According to Nick Underhill of neworleans.football, special teams assistant Phil Galiano, who has been with the Saints for five seasons, is interviewing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for their open special teams coordinator position.
rookie K, undrafted In 2023, Blake Grupe made 30 of 37 field goals and converted all 40 of his extra point attempts. Lou Hedley, an undrafted rookie punter, ranked among the NFL’s best when it came to punts inside an opponent’s 20-yard line but his net average was close to the bottom of the league.
With his first All-Pro selection, second-year wide receiver Rashid Shaheed averaged 13.6 yards per punt return. When it came to punt and kick coverage, the Saints led the league. They gave up a pitiful 5.6 yards per punt return and just 18.8 per kickoff return.
Galiano worked as a special teams coordinator and defensive consultant at Penn State in 2017 and 2018 before coming to the Saints. This past weekend at the Senior Bowl, he served as the National Team’s special teams coach.
