The good news: The Saints managed to land a trade for former head coach Sean Payton after all.
The even better news: We can all, finally, stop guessing about when and whether it might happen.
New Orleans has shipped Payton out to the Denver Broncos in exchange for the No. 30 overall pick in the upcoming draft along with a 2024 2nd, and they'll send back a 2024 third-rounder.
One interesting caveat of the deal is that the No. 30 overall selection will actually be the 29th pick made, due to the fact that the Miami Dolphins will be forfeiting their pick at No. 21. They have to do that as a penalty for tampering with Payton while he was still under contract with the Saints as they attempted to kick the tires on landing him as their future coach.
So, in effect, the Saints' return in their trade from the Broncos in the Sean Payton trade was actually slightly improved by the fact that the Dolphins were trying to get Sean Payton as their head coach before it was allowed. What a twist!
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At the end of the day, Payton's tenure with the Broncos will be one Saints fans watch with interest, but they'll do so while hoping that the return brings dividends for the home team in 2023 and beyond. To do that, Dennis Allen and Co. will have to make hay with their upcoming selections, which include seven picks in the 2023 draft. Here's how all those picks break down over the next several drafts after the Payton trade:
2023
- No. 30 (RD1; via 49ers; technically 29)
- No. 40 (RD2)
- No. 71 (RD3)
- No. 112 (RD4)
- No. 143 (RD5)
- No. 163 (RD5; via Eagles/depends on result of Super Bowl)
- No. 205 (RD7)
*Likely 7th round compensatory selection
All picks after the third round are based on the current picks awarded, but will change based on the number of compensatory picks allotted. There is also some confusion around the conditions for the 6th round pick, but it appears to be headed to the Texans in the Bradley Roby trade prior to the 2021 season.
2024
- RD1 (own)
- RD2 (via Broncos)
- RD4 (own)
- RD5 (own)
- RD6 (own)
- RD6 (via Eagles; later of two selections)
2025
- RD1 (own)
- RD2 (own)
- RD3 (own)
- RD4 (own)
- RD5 (own)
- RD6 (own)
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