2026 NFL Draft: 7 Saints assistants coaching at the Senior Bowl

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On Monday, the Senior Bowl announced its coaching staff for this year's all-star game, and the American Team has a decidedly New Orleans flavor. Between offense, defense, and special teams, seven different Saints assistants will be coaching prospects on that roster. That includes the American Team head (Joel Thomas), defensive coordinator (Peter Sirmon), offensive coordinator (Scott Tolzien), and special teams coordinator (Kyle Wilber), among others.

It's going to give the Saints a big leg up on preparing for the 2026 NFL Draft. Here's a little bit of background on each coach and some of the draft prospects they'll be working with most closely.

Head coach: Joel Thomas

Thomas is the Saints' running backs coach and associate head coach, so it makes sense for him to be nominated for this job. He'll work with every position to some degree while running practices and preparing his team to audition in front of NFL scouts. The American Team running backs are each projected to be Day 3 picks, but the rusher to keep an eye on is Mike Washington Jr. He led the Arkansas Razorbacks with 1,066 yards on the ground (and 30 runs of 10 or more yards) at a clip of 6.4 yards per carry. He moves well for a back listed at 6-foot-2 and 228 pounds. But he fumbled three times this past season and needs to show improved ball security at the Senior Bowl. The American Team running backs include:

  • Mike Washington Jr., Arkansas
  • Rahsul Faison, South Carolina
  • Jam Miller, Alabama
  • J'Mari Taylor, Virginia

Defensive coordinator: Peter Sirmon

Sirmon was hired to coach the Saints' linebackers last year after previously working as the California Golden Bears' defensive coordinator, so this is familiar territory for him. Pitt Panthers linebacker Kyle Louis is probably the highest-rated prospect in the American Team linebacker corps but he's also the slightest-built at 6-foot-1 and 225 pounds. Keep an eye on Auburn outside linebacker Keyron Crawford, who had a good year with 43 pressures while dropping into coverage 125 times, a career-high. He could be a good fit in Brandon Staley's scheme.

  • Kyle Louis, Pitt
  • Keyshaun Elliott, Arizona State
  • Jack Kelly, BYU
  • Xavian Sorey, Arkansas
  • Keyron Crawford (OLB)

Offensive coordinator: Scott Tolzien

Let's start with the obvious: LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier will draw a lot of attention given his connections to the Saints coaching staff. Tolzien, the quarterback coach in New Orleans, works closely with Doug Nussmeier, the passer's father. The younger Nussmeier played his way out of the first round but could still be a top-100 pick. The other quarterbacks on the American Team are Taylen Green (Arkansas) and Luke Altmyer (Illinois), both projected to be Day 3 picks or priority free agent signings.

Special teams coordinator: Kyle Wilber

More specialists will probably be announced later, but for now it's Georgia punter Brett Thorson and BYU kicker William Ferrin on the American Team. Thorson was a four-year starter with the Bulldogs and placed 24 of his 46 punts inside the 20-yard last year, with just four touchbacks and 4.38 seconds of hangtime. His 43.4 net yards per punt would have tied for seventh-best in the NFL. Ferrin had a down year at BYU, connecting on just 23 of 30 field goals with five misses between 40 and 49 yards. Thorson's teammate at Georgia, Beau Gardner, will be the American Team long snapper.

Defensive backs: Robert Blanton

Blanton mostly works with safeties, and that figures to be his focus at the Senior Bowl. It's a good group with several top-100 prospects and all of them should be drafted. AJ Haulcy (LSU Tigers) and Kamari Ramsey (USC) could be second-round targets for the Saints if they feel the safety position is a real priority. Players listed on the American Team roster at safety include:

  • AJ Haulcy, LSU
  • Kamari Ramsey, USC
  • Genesis Smith, Arizona
  • Michael Taaffe, Texas
  • Jakobe Thomas, Miami

Football operations: Ziad Qubti, Mike Martinez

Qubti works as the Saints' college scouting coordinator under Jeff Ireland, while Martinez is the assistant to the head coach. Both guys figure to get more hands-on experience running drills at practice and working in the film room with various prospects, but it remains to be seen what their day-to-day assignments will look like.

This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: 2026 NFL Draft: 7 Saints assistants coaching at the Senior Bowl

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