Sean Payton will not coach this fall, but we knew that already. The intrigue surrounding the Super Bowl champion head coach centered around what TV gig he would chose, and it appears he has chosen.
Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports Payton will join Fox's studio set.
Payton is a no-brainer pickup for Fox, given his immediate and intimate familiarity not only with the Saints, but with the entire NFC.
The New York Post previously reported Payton will appear on "Fox NFL Kickoff," the network's pre-pre-game show. PFT adds that he'll fill in for Jimmy Johnson on "Fox NFL Sunday" during the Hall of Fame coach's off weeks.
Payton taking the Fox job will keep him in front of the NFL community's eyeballs and at the top of decision makers' minds, while allowing himself and Fox a mutual tryout period. If Payton enjoys TV work and Fox enjoys Payton, he'll become an obvious successor for Johnson's chair on the network's main pregame show. Fox's is typically the highest-rated of the NFL pregame shows, and the trio of Johnson, Terry Bradshaw and Howie Long have been mainstays since the show's 1994 debut (with the obvious carve out of Johnson's return to coaching from 1996-99).
With rampant speculation -- fueled by Payton himself -- that his resignation from New Orleans was just a sabbatical and not a retirement, Payton will also have the opportunity to try out for his next coaching job. If Payton lays the blame of a team's 5-8 start at its coaching staff while excusing the roster and management, speculation will immediately ramp to a 10.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.