Former New Orlan Sainta coach Sean Payton may not be waiting that long to make his return to NFL stadiums, but it might be in a drastically different role.
The former New Orleans Saints coach is in negotiations with Fox Sports and could sign on to become its No. 1 game analyst, a source with knowledge of the situation told the Times-Picayune.
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| Sean Payton |
The 58-year-old Payton is competing against former Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen for the spot in the booth next to top play-by-play man Joe Buck, according to the source.
The deal is not yet in place, but according to a Front Office Sports report, Payton could earn up to $10 million annually.
The role Payton is vying for at Fox belonged to Troy Aikman for the past 20 seasons, but Aikman reportedly agreed to a massive deal to join ESPN's Monday Night Football crew.
His experience in the broadcasting world mostly has been limited to guest appearances he's made on several forms of media. But the lack of experience, specifically as an in-game analyst, is not necessarily a big mark against him considering recent precedent.
The move to the booth would not be a surprise. Payton made clear in both his farewell news conference and in the weeks that followed that he was highly interested in pursuing a career as a broadcaster.
Although Payton stepped away from his coaching post, he is still under contract with the Saints for the next three seasons. If Payton decided to pursue a head coaching position with another team during that timeframe, that team would need to fairly compensate the Saints to make the hire.
Payton is the winningest coach in Saints history by a wide margin, winning 152 regular-season games and seven NFC South titles in 15 seasons.
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