Payton says he’ll remain Saints coach

The biggest head coach domino has fallen, as New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton is staying in New Orleans, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday afternoon.

Payton said he understood skepticism about his long-term plans, but insisted New Orleans would always be his coaching home.

“I plan as finishing my career here”, he said.

Payton was speculated as a possible candidate for the 49ers’ head-coaching vacancy after the club fired Jim Tomsula after one season on Sunday night.

Payton added, then added a line he learned from his mentor, Bill Parcells. He said his contract, which runs for two more seasons and pays him about $8 million annually, remains unchanged for now. “I am positive at the right time, all these things will care for themselves”, Payton stated.

The Saints never indicated an interest in letting Payton go, but Loomis had seldom made himself available to comment publicly on the matter.

Although it will always be a players’ league, coaches like Sean Payton don’t come around all that often. New Orleans, however, finished 7-9 each of the past two years.

Since becoming the Saints coach in 2006, he’s produced an explosive offense that’s annually ranked in the top three in passing yards, except in 2009 when they ranked fourth en route to the franchise’s only Super Bowl crown. He said there haven’t been any discussions on a new deal, but said past contracts with Loomis have “taken place in 10 minutes”. I promise you there will be.

That defensive performance led to the mid-season ouster of Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan, who was replaced by Senior Defensive Assistant Dennis Allen.

There were also reports that they wanted a second-round pick for Payton.