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Mike Chiari is a featured Columnist for the New Orleans Saints.
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Adam Hunger.
The New Orleans Saints announced Friday that head coach Sean Payton tested positive.
Dennis Allen will be the Saints' acting head coach on Sunday, with Sean Payton returning to his usual role the following week against the Miami Dolphins.
The league requires that a fully-vaccinated individual return to the team environment, and the Saints said that they would have to be away from the team for 10 days unless that was the case.
The first person in the NFL to have a confirmed case of COVID-19 was Payton.
He was fully recovered in time for the 2020 season and led the Saints to a 12-4 record and a playoff spot. The New Orleans Saints were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Saints have struggled to a 6-7 record this season, losing five games in a row before last week's win over the New York Jets.
After Jameis Winston suffered a season-ending injury, he was replaced byTrevor Siemian. For the past two weeks, Taysom Hill has been the starter.
The streak of four consecutive division titles is likely to end for the Saints this season as the Bucs are currently atop theNFC South.
The Saints are perfect against the Bucs in the regular season over the past two years, and they own a victory over the team this season.
The Saints will be without their head coach and will be facing a team with a four-game winning streak.
Allen has previous head coaching experience.
In his three seasons as the Oakland Raiders' head coach, Allen went 8-28 and never won more than four games in a single season.
The Saints ranked in the top five in points allowed and total defense last season, and they are 11th in both categories this season, despite the fact that Allen has done a good job as the DC.
Even if the Saints win or lose Sunday, they will not win the division, but a win would strengthen their playoff chances, as they are one of five teams tied for the final wild-card spot.
