Sean Payton admits to having FOMO; up for coaching in 2023

If the Dallas Cowboys are looking for a head coach in 2023, the name that will be at the top of many lists will be Sean Payton. The former head coach of the New Orleans Saints has been connected with the position over America’s Team in the press for years. And now that Payton is essentially a free agent, that possibility seems closer than ever.

A former assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach for the Cowboys from 2003-2005, under then head coach Bill Parcells, perhaps Payton would have eventually taken the reins in Dallas if things had been different. He left the Cowboys to become the Saints head coach in 2006. Parcells would retire a year later and Wade Phillips would assume the head coaching position in Dallas.

Payton would famously go on to lead the Saints to their first Super Bowl victory in 2009. And, in turn, the Cowboys haven’t hoisted the Lombardi Trophy since the 1995 season.

With current Cowboys head coach, Mike McCarthy, seemingly on the hot seat in Dallas, Payton is still the hot name as his likely replacement. But currently serving as an analyst for Fox Sports, is the former Saint even interested in coaching next season?

On a recent episode of the NewOrleans.Football Podcast, Payton talked about his willingness to coach again in 2023 if the right opportunity presents itself.

“I’m really enjoying what I’m doing right now, more maybe than I thought. If the right situation presented itself, I would definitely be interested. And there’s no utopia when it comes to teams but, you know, if I felt like it was the right situation, I would have an interest in that. That all being said, that could come in a year. That could come in two years.”

Sean Payton on the NewOrleans.Football Podcast

Payton would go on to admit that he had some FOMO (fear of missing out) while watching football this past weekend.

” … I said this over the weekend. This past weekend’s game versus Tampa was the first time I had like a version of FOMO. I was jealous of everyone that was there, including random Bruce Arians on the sidelines.”

According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, there was a deal in place between the Cowboys, Saints, and Payton for him to become the head coach of America’s Team back in 2019. But that deal fell through due to the Anthony Davis trade. This according to Florio’s book, Playmakers: How the NFL Really Works (And Doesn’t).

Will Sean Payton become the newest head coach for the Dallas Cowboys? Only time will tell. Currently, the position is occupied. But if the Cowboys’ season begins to tank, and that hot seat gets even hotter under Mike McCarthy, expect to hear Payton’s name a lot in the coming weeks.