Interim New Orleans Saints head coach Darren Rizzi could be seen screaming in the face of one of his players in a furious outburst during their game against the New York Giants.
After the Giants scored a punt return touchdown, rookie Saints punter Matthew Hayball felt the wrath of his seething coach on the sideline at MetLife Stadium.
In shocking footage which has gone viral online, Rizzi slammed his baseball cap to the ground and then got in Hayball’s face to make his anger known.
As he gestured animatedly towards the Australian, New Orleans running back Alvin Kamara quickly intervened to pull him away.
Fortunately for both parties, the Saints avoided a near-disaster when the Giants’ punt return touchdown was ruled out due to a holding penalty.
Yet fans on social media are still taking aim at Rizzi for losing his cool with a rookie player in such humiliating fashion.
Interim Saints coach Darren Rizzi was seen screaming in the face of his own player on Sunday
One user wrote on X: ‘That might work in High School or college but you’re yelling at grown men. This isn’t what a head coach looks like’.
Another put: ‘Fake tough guy. Attack a punter. Dude’s accomplished nothing in this league. Not head-coaching material.’
‘What could a punter do to deserve this level of coach tantrum,’ posted a third. ‘“Interim” is as high as Coach Glizzy should get.’
‘I feel bad for Hayball not on national TV coach,’ said a fourth.
While one simply concluded: ‘Not head coach material’.
Rizzi, who first joined the Saints in 2019 as a special teams coordinator before moving up to assistant head coach three years later, took on the interim job at the start of November after the firing of Dennis Allen.
New Orleans were 2-7 at the time of Allen’s dismissal, with the team going 2-1 in Rizzi’s three games at the helm so far.
Hayball, meanwhile, was signed as an undrafted free agent in the offseason on a deal worth $35,000 guaranteed that also included a $10,000 signing bonus.
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Derek Carr injury update: Saints fear QB suffered hand fracture
New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr is no Superman.
While attempting a headfirst dive to secure a first down, the 33-year-old veteran tumbled over two New York Giants defenders and teammate Kevin Austin Jr.
Carr landed face-first, short of the first down and had to exit the game with a hand injury after the play.
Here’s the latest on the Saints quarterback:
Derek Carr injury update
Later on Sunday afternoon, NFL Network reported that Carr might have suffered a fracture in his left (non-throwing) hand.
With just under four minutes left in the fourth quarter, New Orleans backup quarterback Jake Haener took over under center and played for the remainder of the game, which the Saints won, 14-11.
Saints interim head coach Darren Rizzi said Carr suffered a left hand injury during the play. Rizzi also said the quarterback was being evaluated for a concussion but couldn’t confirm whether his quarterback was in the protocol yet.
Before his injury, Carr was 20-of-31 for 219 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Saints QB depth chart
With Carr potentially out with his injury going forward, here’s how the Saints’ depth chart looks at quarterback:
- Derek Carr (left hand injury, possible concussion)
- Jake Haener
- Spencer Rattler
Haener was the Saints’ fourth-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft. He has yet to start a game in his two-year career.
Rattler was a fifth-round pick by the Saints in the 2024 draft. He started three games for New Orleans while Carr was out with an oblique injury earlier this year. The rookie went 0-3 in those three starts.
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