SAINTS vs. PANTHERS CONNECTIONS
Saints Assistant Defensive Backs Coach Robert Blanton prepped at David W. Butler (Matthews, N.C.) HS.
Panthers QB Andy Dalton handled starting quarterback duties in New Orleans in 2022.
Saints QB Spencer Rattler, P Kai Kroeger and G Torricelli Simpkins III played at South Carolina, with Rattler and Kroeger being Gamecocks teammates with Panthers WR Xavier Legette and all three playing with Panthers LB Bam Martin-Scott. Simpkins, who prepped at Olympic (Charlotte, N.C.) HS, transferred to South Carolina from North Carolina Central, where he started his college career.
Panthers CB Jaycee Horn's father, Joe Horn, played wideout for the Saints from 2000-2006 and is a member of the team's Hall of Fame.
Panthers Senior Defensive Assistant Dom Capers served as secondary coach of the Saints from 1986-91.
New Orleans Cornerbacks Coach Grady Brown served as defensive backs coach at South Carolina from 2012-15.
Saints DT Bryan Bresee played at Clemson.
Saints T Asim Richards played at North Carolina.
Saints DB Ugo Amadi, DB Mike Jackson and Lewis were teammates with the Seattle Seahawks.
Panthers DE A'Shawn Robinson, DT Bobby Brown III, LB Christian Rozenboom, S Nick Scott and C Austin Corbett were teammates of Saints DE Jonah Williams and S Terrell Burgess with the Los Angeles Rams, where the Saints defenders played for Saints Defensive Coordinator Brandon Staley and Panthers Defensive Coordinator Ejiro Evero in 2020. Saints TE Juwan Johnson and Scott were college teammates at Penn State from 2016-18.
Saints Edges Coach Jay Rodgers and Panthers Secondary Coach Renaldo Hill served on Staley's Chargers staff, where Hill as defensive coordinator, tutored New Orleans CB Michael Davis and DE Chris Rumph II, a former Duke University standout. Williams and Saints DE Jonathan Bullard played with Carolina DB Xkayleb Evans with the Minnesota Vikings, with Bullard also playing with Panthers LB D.J. Wonnum with the Vikings in 2023. Bullard prepped at Crest Senior (Shelby, N.C.) HS. Saints Defensive Line Coach Bo Davis tutored Robinson at the University of Alabama in 2015, when he was an Outland Trophy finalist.
Saints Head Coach Kellen Moore played quarterback for Panthers Senior Coaching Advisor Jim Caldwell for the Detroit Lions in 2014, when Caldwell was the Lions head coach in his first season with the club. Moore tutored Panthers RB Rico Dowdle with the Dallas Cowboys as offensive coordinator from 2020-22, where he was also a teammate of Richards and New Orleans WR Brandin Cooks.
Saints T Xavier Truss and Carolina C Cade Mays were college teammates at Georgia in 2019.
Saints Asst/Special Teams Coach Kyle Wilber played defensive end/linebacker at Wake Forest, where he and and Panthers Off. Coord. Brad Idzik were teammates in 2011.
New Orleans Passing Game Coord. Terry Joseph sreved as defensive backs coach at North Carolina in 2017.
Carolina Off. Quality Control Dean Petzing and Joseph served on the same Notre Dame staff from 2019-20. Petzing served on the LSU staff from 2022-23.
Panthers LB Claudin Cherelus played at Alcorn State from 2020-22.
Saints Tight Ends Coach Chase Haslett and Quarterbacks Coach Scott Tolzien served on the same Cowboys coaching staff with Panthers Quarterbacks Coach Will Harriger in 2023.
Panthers G Robert Hunt was a standout at Louisiana-Lafayette.
Davis and Panthers Defensive Line Coach Todd Wash served on the same Jacksonville staff in 2016.
Saints CB Kool-Aid McKinstry and Panthers QB Bryce Young and DE LaBryan Ray were college teammates at Alabama.
Saints T Kelvin Banks Jr. LB Jaylan Ford and Panthers TE Ja'Tavion Sanders were teammates at Texas.
Saints DE Chase Young and Panthers WR Brycen Temayne were teammates with the Washington Commanders in 2023. Young, Saints WR Chris Olave and LB Pete Werner played with Panthers S Lathan Ranson at Ohio State.
New Orleans K Blake Grupe and Carolina TE Mitchell Evans were teammates at Notre Dame in 2022.
Saints S Justin Reid and Panthers DE Tershawn Wharton were teammates with the Kansas City Chiefs from 2022-24.
Panthers General Manager/President of Football Operations Dan Morgan spent the 2009 offseason with the Saints.
Saints OL Dillon Radunz and Panthers LB Trevis Gipson were teammates with the Tennessee Titans in 2023.
Saints C Luke Fortner and Panthers LB Trevin Wallace were college teammates at Kentucky.
Saints OL Nick Saldiveri prepped at Parkwood (Monroe, N.C.) HS.
Panthers Special Teams Coordinator Tracy Smith served as an offensive graduate assistant at Louisiana State University in 2005 and is the son of former New Orleans Offensive Coordinator Carl Smith. Tracy Smith tutored Amadi on special teams in Seattle in 2021.
Panthers G Damien Lewis, a Canton, Miss. native, played with Saints TE Foster Moreau at Louisiana State University. Moreau, Panthers WR Hunter Renfrow and S Tre'Von Moehrig-Woodard were teammates with the Raiders.