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I’m not so sure the firing of defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs was a good move, but it was an inevitable move.  Obviously, you can’t get rid of the players.

Did Tom Benson go to Sean Payton and say, “You’ve got to fire Gary Gibbs?” I think more often the pressure comes from the fans, the bloggers and the season tickets holders.  Gibbs was a scapegoat, more than anybody else. So, I don’t think it is Tom Benson that told Payton to fire Gibbs.

No, I think this was pretty much inevitable. You can’t justify firing people on the offensive staff for the way the offense produced.  Special teams had problems with the kicking game that they solved halfway through the season, and you have a first-year special teams coordinator, so you’re not going to get rid of him.

I think people had seen over three years with Gary the defense really hadn’t progressed, but I attribute that more to lack of talent and lack of production with people who are talented.  Ultimately, though, the coordinator bares the responsibility.

DallasCowboys.com

Gary Gibbs

In Gibbs' defense, after the Chicago game when Devon Hester drew a crucial pass interference call in overtime, Gibbs came up to me before the Detroit game – and I think at that time he was already gone, or certainly on the ropes and in a way pleading his case – he told me when you warn these guys prior to that play: “Don’t get beat over the top by Devon Hester,” and on a double move Roman Harper bites on it, coming up from his safety position and gets beat over the top and has to interfere.

Is that Gary Gibbs' fault or is that a lack of production by the players that are in that position?

Ultimately, though, the coordinator bares the responsibility.

As a coach, your job is to put players in place to make plays, then it comes down to their own particular ability to do it or not.  And the Saints have virtually no playmakers on defense, especially in the secondary. They got virtually nothing out of Charles Grant. They got very little out of Will Smith. They’re both going to say they had injures. But even when they were both supposedly healthy, they weren’t making plays.

Were the players talented enough to begin with? That’s up to debate.

So, who’s next?

I would think Payton will probably bring somebody in from the outside because he also has to replace Ed Ogreron, the defensive line coach.  I would think they’ll probably bring somebody in from the outside, who will have a big say in who is hired as the defensive line coach.  As for hiring someone like Romeo Crennel, I think from Payton’s standpoint, he’ll be reluctant to hire a former head coach. And I think most head coaches wouldn’t, especially ones that are on the downside of their popularity, as Payton is here.

Photo by John Bazemore / The Associated Press

New Orleans head coach Sean Payton said finishing 8-8 is a direct reflection of his coaching job this year and that it wasn't good enough. He enters the offseason searching for answers as to why.

What does Gibbs’ firing portend for Payton’s future?

The firings usually start at the bottom of the food chain. Look at the people Payton got rid of before. It was done very quietly. It was a running backs coach and a secondary coach a year ago and done very quietly behind the scenes. The more a head coach feels pressure, the higher up the food chain the firings go. It will hold fans who were calling for Payton’s head at bay for awhile.