Drew Brees last year closed the book on a lengthy career in New Orleans and immediately took his talents to the broadcast booth.
Could another important member of the Saints' franchise history follow suit this offseason?
According to Front Office Sports, FOX Sports is targeting Sean Payton as a potential new partner for play-by-play man Joe Buck. Troy Aikman, who's been with FOX since 2001, apparently could leave the network for Amazon.
FOS' report coincides with somewhat surprising news about Payton's future. NFL Media's Ian Rapoport on Sunday reported Payton hasn't committed to coaching another season in New Orleans although he has three years remaining on his current contract. Rapoport describes the possibility of Payton coaching another team in 2022 as "unlikely" and claims a "mini-retirement" also is on the table for the 58-year-old.
That said, if Payton were to take a year off and then return to coaching in 2023, it reportedly would be with an organization other than the Saints.
If FOX needs to replace Aikman and Payton moves forward with the Saints, we reportedly could see another former star player team up with Buck. FOS highlighted two potential in-house candidates -- Aqib Talib and Greg Olsen -- as well as Philip Rivers, who wasn't involved with the NFL in any capacity in the first year after his retirement.
As for the Saints, their future is far from bright. Their quarterback situation is bad, the state of their salary cap is even worse and they only have five picks in the 2022 NFL Draft.
