Sean Payton left his 16-year Saints HC job for a FOX analyst gig, but the Super Bowl-winning head coach has said on multiple occasions he expects to return to the sideline. This prospective return is being monitored closely around the league.
Payton continues to be linked to the Chargers. While some key hurdles remain in the path of such a partnership, league buzz is not cooling down here. Some around the league believe Payton will wait out this job, per ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler, who calls the Payton-Bolts connection a rather poorly kept secret.
The Chargers first emerged as a Payton destination over the summer, when a report indicated the team’s combination of a quality roster — highlighted by quarterback Justin Herbert — and warm-weather locale was expected to generate interest from the veteran coach. Last month, a report indicated the Bolts gig would be the job Payton would covet the most. The Cowboys and Dolphins were also mentioned in July, but the former has seen its Mike McCarthy hire produce a contending team and the latter path is effectively walled off after the tampering penalty that came about this offseason.
Of course, the Chargers would need to create a head-coaching opening and send the Saints compensation for Payton. No coach has been traded since the Chiefs acquired Herm Edwards‘ rights in 2006. That haul only produced a fourth-round pick. Other HC trades — including the likes of Jon Gruden, Bill Parcells and Don Shula — have involved at least one first-round pick. It is unclear what it would cost for a team to poach Payton, but the Bolts also would need to can Brandon Staley to open the door to a Payton-Herbert partnership.
Staley is 14-13 as Chargers HC. The Bolts managed the rare feat of rostering the Pro Bowl starting quarterback and missing the playoffs — something that had not occurred in the AFC since the 1989 Bengals — last season, with Staley’s largely the culprit. More injuries have hit this season, with a handful of Bolts Pro Bowlers — Joey Bosa and Rashawn Slater chief among them — suffering major maladies that have impacted the team’s play. Still, after a season in which the Chargers ranked 29th in points allowed, they enter Week 12 in that 29th spot.
If the shorthanded Chargers rally and reach the postseason in Staley’s second year, it would be more difficult for the franchise to justify a coaching change. The prospect of a Payton trade clouds this situation, however. Payton, 58, has said it will take a lot to lure him out of the studio and added he will rule out certain organizations. Based on everything that has come out, the Chargers almost certainly are not one of the franchises Payton would deem unacceptable. Until it is confirmed Staley will return for a third season, the potential Payton addition stands to remain a storyline.
While acknowledging many are connecting Payton to the Chargers, ESPN’s Dan Graziano adds the Cardinals are a team to watch here. His through-2027 extension notwithstanding, Kliff Kingsbury can be classified as a hot-seat occupant. The Chargers would probably be preferable to the Saints compared to Payton landing with an NFC team, but Kyler Murray would also be a draw for offensive coaches — albeit not on the Herbert level. This marks the first Payton-Cardinals connection, however.
It’s a little funny that one reason Payton could fit with the Chargers is that the Chargers offense under Payton’s former offensive coordinator has insisted on treating a cannon-armed Herbert like a 38 year old Drew Brees.
As for the Cardinals, going from the least creative offensive mind in football to one of the most would sure be nice. Especially if Payton’s insistence on personnel control forced out Keim. Two birds with one stone.
Man that was a confusingly written article
Sean Payton is a loser. He stepped down because he no longer had a HOF QB and knew he wasn’t going to win. He knew his coaching deficiencies would show when he wasn’t carried by an all time talent at the most premium position. He’s a fraud and a coward, with his only success coming after he put a price on player’s heads. A shame.
MyCommentisbetter- I tend to agree. Payton left at the first sign of trouble. 1 Super Bowl in 16 years and many first round upset losses. Not sure if he isn’t a beneficiary of NFL hype. Would love to see him in Arizona if nothing else than to force out Klunksbury and Keim. Don’t see him coming where the GM is a complete loser like Keim.
I’m not the biggest Payton defender, but this comment completely ignores his offensive design and playcalling, which are both outstanding. On a roster management level, they kept kicking the salary cap can down the road and he left before it could fully explode, but as soon as he left, they traded next year’s first round pick to fix things other than the quarterback situation, so it’s not like pretending there’s no tomorrow was strictly a Payton thing.
He wasn’t a great offensive coach, he was carried by a HOF QB, countless above average RB, and he barely ever won anything of note. He was part of the salary cap issues, and he ran away as soon as they became a problem…. Hence why I believe he’s a fraud
I think you’re just wrong about his offensive coaching and about him being carried by Brees. Payton tailored offenses to Brees’ skills beautifully, including when those skills were seriously reduced. Brees’ arm was very weak those last few years, but the Saints won 11 games or more in his last four seasons. They even managed to have a winning record last year when their injury/QB situation was so bad that the player who attempted the most passes for them was Trevor Siemian.
You may not like him or believe in him, but if he were free and clear available, he would be hands down the most appealing coaching candidate on the market.
He coached a team that started 4 different QBs (Jameis Winston, Taysom Hill, Trevor simien and Ian book) with numerous injuries and zero nfl caliber WRs to a winning record
after Drew Brees.
The Saints just won their 400th game in franchise history. Sean Payton owns 162 of them. Yes he lucked into a generational QB, but Payton had just as big of an effect on Brees’s career as Brees did Payton. Coach Payton will be in the hall of fame and is easily a top five coach in the game right now.
Maybe people don’t remember, but before Sean Payton the Saints were basically the Detroit Lions. He turned a laughing stock franchise into a perineal contender. People talk about “changing the culture” all the time with new coaching regimes. Few actually pull that off. Payton did.
He also had countless number of first round exits. Like I stated earlier, his only successful season he had to put a price on a 40 year old QBs head to beat them. That’s sad. Then this season he gets caught ‘resigning’ and really just colluding with Brady and the dolphins. He’s a disgrace to the league flat out. 2 scandals he’s not HOF material.
Countless first round exits? I mean if you can’t count to two I guess… He made the playoffs nine times and exited in the first game twice. How many teams would turn that down? If I told you your next head coach would take you to the playoffs 9 times in 16 years and win at least one playoff game 7 of those nine you would say no thanks? No one with any sense at all would do that.
I realize I’ll never change anyone’s mind on “bounty gate” but it’s a huge coincidence that the league was just hit with a major concussion lawsuit and needed a scapegoat to say “look how serious we take this.” Even if you believe everything Roger Goodell fed you regarding bounty gate, Sean Payton had nothing to do with the defense. Gregg Williams was the “kill the head and the body will die” guy. Also the Saints had the fewest personal foul penalties of any team in the NFL that season. If they were really trying to injure people, don’t you think a lot of those would have been dirty or late hits that would’ve at least drawn a flag?
Sean Payton will be in the Hall of Fame.
He can be in the HOF, he doesn’t deserve it. He’s a POS, he’s not a good coach let alone great. He hasn’t won anything besides when he put a bounty on players heads. He had a HOF QB for his whole entire career, when he didn’t he missed the playoffs (shocker) . To sit here and say he had NOTHING to do with the defense he COACHED is ridiculous. To think Payton just blindly let Williams do that is the most ridiculous thing ever posted on this site.
You should probably just let it go now.
Good argument. You don’t like him so he’s trash. You win.
I’m guessing you are a Falcons fan or a Vikings fan. Sorry he hurt your feelings.
Exactly how it goes. Not a fan of either of those teams, good try though. He’s never beaten my team in any big game ever, and he never would because he’s a bad coach. Not HOF.
Payton isn’t a fit with Miami because Mike McDaniel is a damn good coach.
The previous Payton article in this forum basically had him indicating that he would only return to NFL coaching if a SB contending team was dropped in his lap. Can someone explain how the Chargers or Cardinals meet that criteria?
5 playoffs Ws since 2010 is average
Sounds like you don’t understand the definition of “average”
Payton should stay away from the Cardinals, as it is dangerous to hitch your wagon to a cap-draining QB who would rather play video games than study game film.
San Diego is a good fit, but so is Denver, Indianapolis, and Las Vegas.
San Diego would need a team to be a good fit.
The Spanos trust fund fools will always embrace the path of incompetence, insincerity, ignorance, and bad karma. Payton won’t coach there as chargers have a permanent foul odor that emanates from the top down and plagues the team.