Sean Payton will remain in New Orleans as the head coach of the Saints, according to a report from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Update>> Payton has now announced it.
Chatter about Payton's status in New Orleans reached peak levels today after a scheduled presser at 1pm CST was pushed back. The decision to keep Payton was made after several days of discussions.
Payton's Saints finished 7-9 for the second consecutive year. The team struggled quite a bit on defense this season, firing defensive coordinator Rob Ryan in mid-November following a series of embarrassing losses. In nine seasons leading the franchise, Payton is 87-57 overall, with a Super Bowl in 2009 to his credit. After winning double digit games from 2009-2013, the Saints have dropped to a mediocre 7-9 the past two seasons. Payton's success, coupled with his rocky status the past few weeks in New Orleans leading up to today's announcement, attracted a fair amount of interest from other franchises looking to hire a new leader, but Payton notes that NOLA is where he "plans on coaching," and staying.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest developments.