NFL teams hoping to hire Sean Payton 'will also get defensive coordinator Vic Fangio'

Super Bowl winner Sean Payton has reportedly agreed to add defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to his growing staff, which is curious, considering the longtime New Orleans Saints head coach is currently without a team.

Regardless of that fact, ESPN is reporting that the 58-year-old Payton is speaking with coaches about joining him wherever he does sign, and that includes Fangio, a former Denver Broncos head coach. Payton is still working as a Fox Sports analyst, but is widely believed to be returning to the NFL coaching ranks when this season ends.

The Carolina Panthers and Indianapolis Colts are two teams expected to have vacancies, having already fired their head coaches earlier this season. The 1-12 Houston Texans may also decide to fire head coach Lovie Smith, while the 3-11 Chicago Bears and 4-10 Arizona Cardinals may look to replace Matt Eberflus and Kliff Kingsbury, respectively.

Fangio is currently working as a defensive consultant for the Philadelphia Eagles after being fired following three losing seasons in Denver.

He is credited with improving defensive units in San Francisco, Baltimore, Houston, and Indianapolis.

Payton, an offensive whiz who guided New Orleans to a Super Bowl win at the end of the 2009 season, is expected to come at a high price – potentially rivalling Los Angels Rams head coach Sean McVay’s reported $15 million annual salary. Furthermore, since Payton abruptly retired in the midst of his contract with the Saints, any team that hires him may have to compensate New Orleans with one or multiple draft picks.

A handshake agreement with Fangio – considered one of the NFL’s top defensive minds – would help bolster Payton’s candidacy around the NFL.

Payton, 58, shocked fans by abruptly resigning in January after 15 seasons and a Super Bowl title with the team. Since then, the Saints have struggled, going 5-9 under first-year head coach Dennis Allen, while Payton reportedly remains the top candidate for several teams.

Last month, both ESPN and podcaster Johnny Venerable reported Payton's interest in the 4-20 Cardinals and Los Angeles Chargers, which are now 8-6 having won two straight.

Kingsbury is likely headed for his third straight losing season only five months after the team made a five-year, $230 million commitment to 25-year-old quarterback Kyler Murray, who is now out with a season-ending knee injury.

This is not the first indication that Payton would be interested in coaching the Chargers.

As one NFL executive told the Washington Post's Jason La Canfora in October, Payton 'really wants' to coach talented Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, who will likely be among the game's highest-paid players when his contract expires after the 2023 season.

'[Dean] Spanos doesn't like to pay his coaches, but once your quarterback starts making $50 million a year, you're really going to be cheap about your head coach?' the unnamed executive told La Canfora.

'Sean loves living in Southern California. You've got Herbert and some other blue-chip players. That's the fit.'

In November, ESPN's Dan Graziano characterized the opportunities facing Payton by stressing that the decorated coach is looking for a team with solid starting quarterback.

'… I think just about every team with an opening will want to talk to him,' Graziano said. 'Carolina, for example, would probably love a chance to throw a pile of money at Payton.

'But my sense is that he'll be picky and will look for a spot where the QB situation is solid, first and foremost. That's why I think a lot of people are connecting him with a potential Chargers opening. People would line up to coach Justin Herbert if that job came open.

'If not there, I've been told to watch Arizona as a potential Payton destination (again, assuming there's an opening there). And your point is well taken about the fact that an interested team would actually have to give the Saints some compensation in return for Payton, since he's still under contract with New Orleans. Makes me think it's even less likely that NFC South rival Carolina would have a chance.

Previously Payton told ESPN that he was waiting for the 'right situation' before returning to coaching.

'If the right situation presented itself, I would definitely be interested,' he said. 'And there's no utopia, if you will, when it comes to teams, but 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.'

Specifically, Payton, who has a 152-89 record over 15 seasons, is looking for 'functional ownership [and] front office.'