Sean Payton reportedly ‘not an option’ for Cowboys head coaching job

Sean Payton may be at the top of any list of potential head coaching candidates Jerry Jones puts together this offseason, but the Dallas Cowboys are not going to have a chance to hire him away from the New Orleans Saints.

While a team can technically trade for a coach that is under contract with another franchise, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Payton will not be an option for the Cowboys in 2020. Part of the reason for that may be that their interest in him last year helped him negotiate an extension with the Saints.

From @NFLGameDay: If the #Cowboys move on from coach Jason Garrett, Sean Payton isn't an option… but last offseason, through back channels, they made it known they were interested in him if he was interested in them. That helped Payton land a massive contract extension. pic.twitter.com/zTiAEyAThm

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 15, 2019

A previous report claimed that the Cowboys will do anything possible to pry Payton away from New Orleans, but there’s no reason to think the Saints will let him go. Payton is arguably the second best coach in the NFL behind Bill Belichick, and it’s hard to put a price on an asset like that.

There are plenty of high-profile candidates for the Cowboys to consider this offseason other than Payton. Ron Rivera is expected to be pursued by a number of teams, and there has also been talk about Urban Meyer or Lincoln Riley making the leap to the NFL if Dallas is interested. Although, some comments Jones made this week indicate he may prefer not to hire an inexperienced coach.