New Orleans Saints Trade Rumors: Second-Round Pick For Coach Sean Payton?

New Orleans Saints trade rumors suggest a trade of head coach Sean Payton could take place. These Saints trade rumors indicate that the franchise wants a second-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft to deal him. A report from CBS Sports takes the rumors one step further, linking the team to discussions with the Indianapolis Colts and San Francisco 49ers. While the Colts ended up going in a different direction after discussing Payton with the Saints, the 49ers could still be on board to make a deal.

After another dismal season, where the Saints finished with a 7-9 record, the franchise could be heading into a rebuilding phase. The team cost itself in the 2016 NFL Draft order by winning the final two games of the regular season, but there are too many holes on the roster to expect that these wins are a trend. The Saints gave up 476 points during the 2015 NFL season, a mark which was the worst in the league (by far).

While the asking price in these New Orleans Saints trade rumors appears pretty high, there are a number of teams that could certainly use a huge improvement at the head coach position. The San Francisco 49ers just fired head coach Jim Tomsula after only one season with the team. He helped lead a struggling 49ers roster to a 5-11 record during the 2015 NFL season. The team wound up finishing in last place in the NFC West after getting swept by the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks in four games. Coming up short against divisional rivals is not something the front office enjoyed seeing from its new coach.

In the updated2016 NFL Draft order, the New Orleans Saints have the No. 12 selection after finishing the season on that two-game winning streak. If the team had lost those two games, the worst draft position they would have is No. 8 overall. The 49ers are slated to pick No. 7 after finishing 5-11, showing that the team would have a good second-round pick to offer the Saints. The question becomes whether the front office in Santa Clara feels that it is worth it to trade a potential top prospect just to fix the coaching problem.

Sean Payton has been the coach of the New Orleans Saints for the past nine NFL season. During that time, he has posted an 87-57 record during the regular season. That doesn’t include the 2012 NFL season when he was suspended by the league for his alleged role in “Bountygate.” That record includes two seasons where the Saints finished 13-3, as well as five years of making it into the NFL Playoffs. The Saints won 6-of-10 playoff games during his tenure, including the 2009 Super Bowl.

Before he signed as the new head coach for the Saints in 2006, Payton spent time as the quarterbacks coach with the Philadelphia Eagles, the offensive coordinator of the New York Giants, and as an assistant head coach with the Dallas Cowboys. He was also a college football coach with San Diego State, Indiana State, Miami of Ohio, and Illinois before he got the call from the Eagles for the 1997 NFL season.

Sean Payton currently has two more years left on a five-year deal he signed with the Saints. It calls for Payton to be paid $8 million in the 2016 and 2017 NFL seasons. The team also has Drew Brees under contract for one more season, but dealing Payton and possibly Brees could help the long-term look of the franchise. While the current New Orleans Saints trade rumors don’t indicate a deal is close to being done yet, there are certainly murmurs of discussions between the front offices of New Orleans and the San Francisco 49ers.