Bye Week Discussion: OL Coach Brandan Nugent

Nugent joined the Saints as an assistant in 2015. He was run-game coordinator in 2020 and became offensive line coach in 2021. Dennis Allen did not retain him and he became the Chargers OL coach from 2022-23. He went back to assistant OL coach for the Seahawks in 2024 and came back to the Saints as OL coach in 2025.

The below was taken from Saints Report, so I can’t verify accuracy, but I don’t see any reason to doubt it either.

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2020 (Saints run game coordinator): Run blocking PFF grade 76 (8th in the league), YBC (yards before contact) 5th in league, ESPN run-block win rate 9th in league
2021 (Saints offensive line coach): Pass blocking PFF grade 64.8 (20th in the league), Run block PFF grade 60.1 (25th in league), YBC 31st in league, ESPN run-block win rate 25th in league
2022 (Chargers offensive line coach): Pass blocking PFF grade 68.3 (18th in the league), Run block PFF grade 45.7 (32nd in league), YBC 30th in league, ESPN run-block win rate 28th in league
2023 (Chargers offensive line coach): Pass blocking PFF grade 66.7 (13th in the league), Run block PFF grade 40.1 (32nd in league), YBC 32nd in league, ESPN run-block win rate 16th in league
2025 (Saints offensive line coach): Pass blocking PFF grade 64.9 (don't have exact rank on this one), Run block PFF grade 49.8 (31st in league), YBC 30th in league, ESPN run-block win rate, 23rd in league

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Our OL is littered with high round picks and a big named FA. Yet we can’t run the ball and we are getting our QB destroyed. It’s obvious this guy isn’t getting it done.


I think this article from Saints Wire says it best.

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Start with the running game. The Saints have too many cooks in the kitchen for a unit producing the NFL's lowest single-game output since early 2022. New Orleans couldn't run for even 10 yards against a middle-of-the-road Pittsburgh Steelers run defense. Look at everyone involved with that operation on the coaching staff: Moore, the play caller; offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier; running backs coach/associate head coach Joel Thomas; run game coordinator T.J. Paganetti, who followed Moore from the Philadelphia Eagles; offensive line coach Brendan Nugent plus his assistants Will Clapp and Tobijah Hughley; and senior assistant Scott Linehan. Shuffle the group or at least cut down on the number of voices in the room. Zone or gap blocking, inside or out -- there isn't a single concept the Saints have consistently ran well. They need to find something that works and lean on it.

It doesn't feel like an accident that the laziest hires Moore made when building this staff have been the areas of biggest concern. He and Nugent worked together for a year on the Los Angeles Chargers, but most of Nugent's credibility came from his previous stint coaching the New Orleans offensive line. He was brought back just like Thomas and special teams coordinator Phil Galiano, who was retained from the previous staff. This inability to run the football (or protect banged-up quarterback Tyler Shough) and the mistake-filled kicking units are a direct response to those personnel moves.

Moore continues to fail to deliver. Benson threw down the gauntlet. Now it's her responsibility to see that challenge through and demand changes. If that means dismissing Moore now and forcing Loomis to go out to pasture after the season, so be it. If it means releasing some well-liked assistants who aren't getting the job done? Well, it would be a start. This Saints team can't come out of the bye week with the same structure intact.

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