The list of teams in on the Sean Payton sweepstakes reportedly has grown to four.
Payton, one of the most coveted candidates in this year’s NFL hiring cycle, is set to interview with the Cardinals, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. It remains unclear exactly when the meeting will take place, but Arizona now joins Denver, Carolina and Houston as the four franchises who have interviews set up or already have interviewed the ex-Saints head coach.
The Cardinals previously had been granted permission to interview Payton by the Saints, with whom Payton is still under contract despite retiring after the 2021 season. However, the 59-year-old had neglected to mention that he was interviewing with the NFC West club last Monday when he confirmed on The Herd with Colin Cowherd that he would interview with the Broncos, Panthers and Texans.
According to an earlier report from NFL Network, Payton has been “doing homework” on the Arizona job and is apparently a fan of franchise quarterback Kyler Murray. However, the Cardinals are currently working their way through a significant regime change following a disappointing campaign, which could explain the delay in setting up an interview with Payton.
The Cardinals fired Kliff Kingsbury at the end of a 4–13 season in 2022, which marked the team’s worst finish in the four seasons that the former Texas Texas coach was at the helm. At the same time, Arizona announced that general manager Steve Keim informed the team that he would step down from his role to focus on his health.
The Cardinals acted quickly and hired former Titans director of player personnel Monti Ossenfort to be their next general manager. That leaves just a head coaching vacancy remaining, where Payton appears to be one of the candidates.
