“They got a team I think that wins the South this year.”⁰@SeanPayton on the @Saints lookin to bounce back in 2022.@FanDuelTV | @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/i6edrOVk6A
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) September 6, 2022
Here’s a good look at Sean Payton-as-media analyst. The former New Orleans Saints coach accepted a position with FOX Sports on their studio panels for the 2022 season earlier this summer, and he made an appearance in this new capacity on the “Up & Adams Show” with Kay Adams to share his thoughts on the NFL and his old team before the season starts.
“I think D.A. is extremely bright, he’s been a head coach. I think it’s a great situation he’s coming into,” Payton said, echoing Allen’s past comments on the ready-to-compete roster and the support from Mickey Loomis as the NFL’s longest-tenured general manager. He added, “They’ve got a team I think that wins the South this year, not Tampa. I think defensively you’ll see one of the better defenses in our league this year.”
When asked for his response on NBC Sports columnist Peter King predicting the Saints will win the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed, Payton zeroed in on the two-horse race in the division. “Tampa [or New Orleans], it’s gonna be one of those two teams. … Any time those two teams play, New Orleans believes they can win that game. And I think that’s pretty powerful, when you have that confidence. So I’m sure it’ll be a close race and we’ll follow it closely.”
That’s a safe diagnosis. The Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons are both in the middle of rebuilds and shouldn’t be competitive this year, leaving the always-feisty Saints and upstart Buccaneers on top of the standings. Payton built a strong roster in New Orleans before choosing to walk away from it, and the Saints have made a point to build off of his blueprint in the months since he stepped down as their head coach. We’ll find out very soon whether or not that was the right approach.
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