Source: Broncos get Payton as coach in deal with Saints
The Denver Broncos have agreed to a deal with the New Orleans Saints that will make Sean Payton their head coach, a person with knowledge of the accord said Tuesday.
The person, who spoke to Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the teams hadn’t announced the agreement, said the Broncos would send their first-round pick, No. 29 overall, in this year’s draft to the Saints along with a future secondrounder. Denver also will receive a third-round pick in the trade.
Payton remained under contract with New Orleans after stepping down from the Saints last year and working in broadcasting this season.
Payton, 59, went 152-89 in 15 seasons with the Saints and 9-8 in the playoffs. He led New Orleans to a 31-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts in the Super Bowl following the 2009 season. He stepped away last year when quarterback Drew Brees retired.
The Broncos, who went 5-12 in 2022 and extended their playoff drought to seven years, fired rookie coach Nathaniel Hackett on Dec. 26 after he went 4-11. Interim coach Jerry Rosburg went 1-1.
Payton’s top task will be to get quarterback Russell Wilson back to his winning ways after the 11-year pro had his worst statistical season following his blockbuster trade from Seattle for four premium draft picks and three players.
Rodgers says after Super Bowl:
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said he doesn’t expect to make a decision on whether to play next season until after the Super Bowl. Rodgers, 39, has said he is still making up his mind on whether he wants to return to the Packers for a 19th season, retire or request a trade. The four-time MVP also has noted the possibility the Packers may want to move him.
“It’s going to be a little more time for my decision,” Rodgers said Tuesday during his weekly appearance on “The Pat Mcafee Show” on Siriusxm and Youtube. “I feel confident that in a couple of weeks I’ll feel definitely more strongly about one of the two decisions.”
The first decision is whether he wants to play at all.
“You’ve got to be cognizant of what was going through your mind during the season,” Rodgers said. “Did you enjoy the grind as much? Did you enjoy practice? Did you enjoy the meeting time? Did you enjoy the routine? And not forget about those feelings and make an emotional response either way. I think that’s important.”
Rodgers was the league MVP in 2020 and 2021, but didn’t perform as well this season while playing with a broken right thumb and dealing with the absence of star wideout Davante Adams, who was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders in March.
Texans hire 49ers’ Ryans:
Demeco Ryans has been hired as coach of the Houston Texans, a person with knowledge of the decision told Associated Press on Tuesday.
The person spoke on the condition on anonymity since the hiring had not been announced.
The move gives him his first head coaching job and brings him back to the place where he started his playing career.
Ryans joins the Texans from the San Francisco 49ers, where he spent the past two seasons as their defensive coordinator.
The NFL’S salary cap will be $224.8 million in 2023, an increase of $16.6 million. The league informed teams of the new cap figure on Monday in a memo obtained by Associated Press.
Overall, the cap is up $42.3 million from 2021, when it was at $182.5 million after the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic caused a decrease of nearly $10 million. Teams must be under the cap by 4 p.m. March 15.