The New Orleans Saints organization announced the death of former defensive coordinator Steve Sidwell. Sidwell passed away Wednesday at age 78.

Saints head coach Dennis Allen reacted to the death of Sidwell, saying,  “Number one, I'd say our thoughts and prayers go out to his family. He was a tremendous defensive coach in our league. He led the Dome Patrol defense which is really the standard of defense for the New Orleans Saints. It's what we aspire to be defensively. It's a sad day for our organization,” via the Saints Twitter page.

Steve Sidwell was the longtime Saints defensive coordinator from 1986-1994. He also was the linebackers coach for the majority of that span, from 1986-1993. As Allen mentioned, he famously coached the Dome Patrol defense which led the NFL in fewest points allowed over back-to-back seasons from 1991-1992 and made several playoff appearances. In 1991, one of his linebackers Pat Swilling won the Defensive Player of the Year award.

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Sidwell was a defensive position coach or coordinator in college football or the NFL over 36 years from 1966-2002. Though he had the longest tenure with the Saints, he also served as defensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, Houston Oilers, and Seattle Seahawks.

Saints owner Gayle Benson also released a statement following the passing. “For nine years, Steve Sidwell played an integral role in the success of the New Orleans Saints and helped develop several of the franchise's greatest defensive players. The success of these teams and players continue to resonate with our organization and fan base to this day. My late husband Tom owned the team during Steve's entire tenure and had a great affinity for him both as a coach and as a person. In addition to being an outstanding coach, Steve was also a dedicated husband, father and grandfather. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the entire Sidwell family, including his wife Kathleen and two sons, Brad and Scott,” via the Saints official website.