The Saints’ first interim head coach started giving way to the second one during the preseason finale against the Titans on Thursday night.
Joe Vitt handed more of the duties to Aaron Kromer to help Kromer prepare for the job of leading the Saints in the regular season. Kromer threw a successful challenge flag and Vitt gave him credit for managing the game well when the contest wrapped up. Vitt also took a moment to say his own temporary farewell ahead of the six-game suspension he will serve as a result of the league’s punishment for the team’s bounty program.
“I just told the guys it’s been my honor and my pleasure. It really has been. You know the greats in this game like Paul Brown stepped away and the game went on,” Vitt said, via Larry Holder of the New Orleans Times-Picayune. “Don Shula stepped away and the game went on. George Halas stepped away and the game went on. The only person dreading this more is my wife.”
While it’s a bit difficult to see the connection between taking six weeks off after four preseason games as interim coach and the retirements of the legends Vitt referred to on Thursday night, his points are easy enough to understand. Vitt’s going to go nuts without having football in his life and things are going to roll along with the season regardless of who is filling the head coach role for the Saints, so there’s not much point in losing sleep about it.