METAIRIE, La. -- The New Orleans Saints have fired run game coordinator T.J. Paganetti, coach Kellen Moore announced Monday
The Saints, who had a bye last week, were coming off one of their worst rushing performances in franchise history. New Orleans could only muster 18 rushing yards on 17 attempts in a 16-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Paris. It was their worst performance on the ground since an 11-yard rushing game in 1999.
Moore said after the game that they would evaluate everything during the bye week. The Saints (2-5) are currently in last place in the NFC South and have not only struggled to run the ball, they have also had kicking issues and have given up at least 100 net rushing yards in every game but one.
"It's self-scout week, so obviously we're going to evaluate everything. We got to be more consistent in that process and let's go through that like every position ... Daniel [Carlson]'s made a lot of kicks for us. Obviously we've had a few missed. We get to evaluate that forward," Moore said during the bye week.
Moore said during the bye week that Paganetti and offensive line coach Brendan Nugent did a lot of the pregame prep work regarding the run game, with him also getting involved.
"We get a collaborative effort with the entire offensive staff, similar to the pass game. I've always been a big group meeting structure as far as having everyone in there and involved. It's been that way since Dallas, L.A. and Philadelphia," Moore said.
This is the first major change Moore has made on his coaching staff since he was hired prior to last season. The coaching staff was largely kept the same from the 2025 season despite the team's 6-11 finish. The Saints started out 1-8 last season and won four of their last five games following a midseason switch to quarterback Tyler Shough.