Kellen Moore's short tenure with the LA Chargers was not successful on paper but it set him up to catapult into a head coaching job this offseason. Moore was not brought back by Jim Harbaugh, instead taking the offensive coordinator job with the Philadelphia Eagles.
The rest is history. The Eagles went on to win Super Bowl 59 with Moore piloting an impressive offense that scored a combined 95 points in the NFC Championship and Super Bowl and Moore was then hired to be the next head coach for the New Orleans Saints.
Moore is now tasked with building out his coaching staff with former Chargers head coach Brandon Staley emerging as the favorite for the defensive coordinator job. Staley is not the only former Chargers coach who is in the running for a coordinator spot in New Orleans.
Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, former Chargers quarterbacks coach Doug Nussmeier has officially interviewed for the Saints' vacant offensive coordinator position.
The #Saints and new coach Kellen Moore are set to interview former #Chargers coach Brandon Staley for defensive coordinator today and #Eagles QBs coach Doug Nussmeier for offensive coordinator early this week, sources say.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 16, 2025
Two of them top candidates.
Kellen Moore wastes no time interviewing former Chargers QBs coach Doug Nussmeier
At this point, it appears as if the Saints' OC job is Nussmeier's to lose this offseason. Nussmeier has extensive history with Moore and the big-name offensive coordinator candidates are no longer on the market.
Nussmeier has followed Moore at every turn the last two seasons. The two first worked together in Dallas with Nussmeier serving as the quarterbacks coach while Moore was the offensive coordinator. Nussmeier followed Moore to Los Angeles and to Philadelphia once Moore's tenure with the Chargers ended.
Nussmeier did not leave much of an impression in his lone season with the Chargers. The 2023 season was a lost season of sorts as injuries derailed the offense from really ever picking up steam.
Moore's offense was cooking early in the season with it appearing like the Chargers stumbled into a top-tier offense. That all came crashing down when Mike Williams and Corey Linsley suffered season-ending injuries. Once Justin Herbert broke his finger it was all but over.
If hired, Nussmeier likely won't be the play-caller in New Orleans. As an offensive coach, Moore will call the offense and lean on Nussmeier in a supporting role as offensive coordinator.
The same will not be said for Staley if he is hired by the Saints. Staley would undoubtedly be the defensive play-caller for New Orleans. Staley's three-year tenure as the Chargers' defensive play-caller could not have gone any worse, which is a bad omen for the Saints.