Mike McCarthy Removes Himself from Saints’ Head Coaching Search
Mike McCarthy has decided against coaching in 2025, taking himself out of the running to fill the NFL’s last remaining head coaching vacancy with the New Orleans Saints. A person familiar with McCarthy’s decision disclosed it to The Associated Press on Tuesday night, although neither McCarthy nor the Saints have publicly discussed the matter.
McCarthy is the third high-profile candidate to withdraw from consideration for the Saints’ head coaching position, joining Buffalo offensive coordinator Joe Brady and Washington offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. The remaining candidates for the job include Philadelphia offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi, Miami defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver, and New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, all of whom have conducted in-person interviews.
The Saints would need to wait until after the Philadelphia Eagles play the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl on February 9 if they plan to hire Moore. Rizzi, who took over as interim coach after the firing of Dennis Allen in November, went 3-5 but started 3-1 before quarterback Derek Carr was lost for the season due to injury.
McCarthy, 61, spent five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys and won a Super Bowl during his 12 seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He had previously thrived as an offensive coordinator in New Orleans from 2000 to 2004 and was considered the most established candidate under consideration for the Saints’ head coaching job.