Sean Payton has interviewed with multiple teams for head coach jobs, but it is sounding more and more like he will not return to the sideline in 2023.
The Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and Houston Texans have all interviewed Payton. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, none of those teams have scheduled second interviews with the 59-year-old coach. The Panthers are set to bring Frank Reich, Steve Wilkes and Kellen Moore in for second interviews. The Texans have not requested to meet with Payton again, and Rapoport says the Broncos are “focusing elsewhere.”
Payton is scheduled to meet with the Arizona Cardinals on Friday.
All of that has led Rapoport to believe that there may not be a logical landing spot for Payton.
“If you go through the different places that Sean Payton has interviewed, it does not seem like a second interview is coming with any of those places. … As of right now, it does not seem like there is a place for Sean Payton,” Rapoport said. “We’ll see, but it does not seem like there is a place in the coaching world right now.”
From NFL Now: As teams line up second interviews, former #Saints coach Sean Payton does not have one lined up. Will all the spots fill up? pic.twitter.com/HG5qCXR3g1
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 25, 2023
That meshes with what Jeff Duncan of NOLA.com reported on Tuesday, which is that Payton becomes more and more likely to remain as an analyst with FOX the longer the interview process drags out.
The Broncos seemed to want Payton badly at the start of the hiring cycle. If they are focusing elsewhere, that likely means Payton is not interested in the job.
Payton has said he enjoys his gig with FOX. If he does not view any of the available head coach jobs as ideal fits, he could easily wait and generate just as much a year from now. He seems to be trending in that direction.
