Drew Brees left the Los Angeles Chargers as a free agent in 2006, joined the New Orleans Saints, and embarked on an incredible 15-year stint with the franchise.

Sean Payton has twice tried to hire ex-linebacker Rob Ninkovich as a coach, once with the Saints and once with the Broncos.

Former Saints head coach Sean Payton took to social media Wednesday to challenge legendary former Alabama head coach Nick Saban on his recollection of how Drew Brees ended up in New Orleans in 2006. Nineteen years ago, Saban was entering his second campaign as the head coach of the Dolphins following a 9-7 season.

They signed safety Brandon Jones, defensive lineman Malcolm Roach and inside linebacker Cody Barton to modest deals. During the NFL draft, they traded a future sixth-round pick for John Franklin-Myers and quickly signed him to a reworked, two-year deal worth $15 million.

Just four teams have drafted fewer players than the Saints since they promoted Mickey Loomis to GM. Years of trade gambles haven’t paid off:

DENVER — The Denver Broncos and the Los Angeles ... protection unit, Sean Payton would be 3-1 against Kansas City since becoming Broncos head coach, and Jim Harbaugh was really close to going 2-0 against Andy Reid this season. The Chargers (11-7) lost ...

There are several big factors for Jones in this coaching search — one of which is not letting a coach destined for success get away from him again.

Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow and Saquon Barkley are finalists for The Associated Press 2024 NFL Most Valuable Player and Offensive Player of the Year awards.

Aaron Glenn played under Sean Payton with the Saints and later returned to New Orleans as a coach. He’s now the head coach in New York.

A common joke is that the NFL stands for “Not For Long.” Players have relatively short careers, and head coaches have very little job security. Which coaches have developed a program consistent enough to be perennial contenders?

If his Broncos had upset the Buffalo Bills in the wild card round of the AFC playoffs, the back-to-back Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs were next. And Payton wanted the Chiefs. Bad. “The next game we had to play, we felt really good about,” Payton said Wednesday. So much for a 2-17 record against the Chiefs since Week 2 of 2015.

Oct 5, 2024; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (4) runs ball while defended by Texas Tech Red Raiders defender Macho Stevenson (12) during second quarter at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images