Meet the New Orleans Saints coaches: Phil Galiano

Galiano is entering his fifth season with New Orleans

Jul 06, 2023 at 09:30 AM

New Orleans Saints

Phil Galiano

Assistant Special Teams

College: Shippensburg University

Phil Galiano enters his fifth season with the New Orleans Saints as assistant special teams coach in 2023. Galiano is a veteran in the coaching ranks with 23 years of experience, including seven seasons in the NFL.

Over his Saints career, Galiano's work with special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi has made the kicking an integral part of New Orleans' success. On coverage units, J.T. Gray's 54 tackles rank second in the NFL. Galiano has helped guide K Wil Lutz into second place on the club's all-time list for scoring (781), field goals (165) and PATs (286). The punting game has produced the top three seasons in club history for inside-20s. Since 2019, the Saints have excelled in the return game. Over the four-season period, the team has been ranked sixth in the NFL in both punt return average (9.6) and kickoff return average (23.5).

Last season, the Saints special teams units delivered another productive season. After a season-ending toe injury, suffered by Deonte Harty, rookie WR/RS Rashid Shaheed had a 9.7 average on 20 punt returns. Despite missing three contests, Gray led the Saints with 12 coverage stops. P Blake Gillikin had a team-record 32 punts inside-the-20.

In 2021, Saints special teams ranked fifth in NFL writer Rick Gosselin's comprehensive special teams rankings for the second consecutive season. Special teams ace J.T. Gray received his first career selection as a starter in the league's All-Star Game after leading the NFL with 19 special teams tackles and was also an AP first-team All-Pro. LB Andrew Dowell, in his first full NFL season, tied for fifth in the league with 14 coverage stops and blocked a punt. Galiano helped prepare Blake Gillikin for his first season handling punting duties. 29 of Gillikin's punts were downed inside the 20-yard line, ranked fourth in the NFL and tying a team record. The Saints special teams unit ranked fourth in the NFL in opponent average starting position after kickoffs (24.1-yard line) and eighth in punt return average (10.0).

A three-year starter at safety for Shippensburg, Galiano served as a tri-captain during his senior campaign. He helped lead the Raiders to three consecutive winning seasons from 1997-99. The Norristown, Pennsylvania native graduated with a bachelor's degree in business administration.

PLAYING CAREER: Shippensburg, 1996-99.

Phil Galiano Coaching Career

Table inside Article
Team	Position Held	Years
Dickinson (College)	Outside Linebackers Coach	2000
New Haven (College)	Outside Linebackers Coach	2001
Villanova (College)	Offensive Assistant	2002
Rutgers (College)	Defensive Graduate Assistant	2003
Rutgers (College)	Linebackers Coach	2004
Rutgers (College)	Defensive Ends Coach	2005-06
Florida International (College)	Defensive Coordinator & Linebackers Coach	2007-09
Rutgers (College)	Defensive Line Coach	2010
Rutgers (College)	Tight Ends Coach	2011
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (NFL)	Assistant Special Teams Coach	2012-13
Rutgers (College)	Director of Recruiting	2014
Rutgers (College)	Special Teams Coordinator & Tight Ends Coach	2015
Miami Dolphins (NFL)	Special Teams Intern	2016
Penn State (College)	Defensive Consultant	2017
Penn State (College)	Special Teams Coordinator & Assistant defensive Line Coach	2018
New Orleans Saints (NFL)	Assistant Special Teams	2019-present

Photos: 2023 Saints Rookie Tour Part 2

New Orleans Saints rookies for the upcoming 2023 NFL season tour the city of New Orleans for the second time as they enjoy some down time ahead of Saints Training Camp.

New Orleans Saints

1 / 76

New Orleans Saints rookies for the upcoming 2023 NFL season tour the city of New Orleans as they enjoy some down time ahead of Saints Training Camp.