What did the New Orleans Saints get in the Sean Payton trade?

For the first time since Jan. 2, 2022, Sean Payton will be on the sidelines of the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. The Denver Broncos coach returns to the place where he spent 15 seasons as the head coach and the all-time winningest coach in Saints’ franchise history in ‘Thursday Night Football’ this week.

Payton retired from the Saints’ head coaching position in January 2022 but he left the door open to a return to the NFL.

‘I don’t like the word ‘retirement,” he said at his retirement press conference. ‘I still have a vision for doing things in football. And to be honest with you, that might be coaching again at some point.’

One year later, he returned to the NFL with the Broncos. Here’s why Denver had to compensate New Orleans to get Payton – and what exactly they gave up.

What did the Saints get in the Sean Payton trade?

In order to get Payton, the Broncos made the following trade with New Orleans:

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New Orleans received: 2023 first-round pick, 2024 second-round pick.
Denver Broncos received: Payton, 2024 third-round pick.

Payton became one of the highest-paid coaches in the NFL once he signed a contract with Denver. He is reportedly making around $18 million per season over a five-year contract.

Why did the Broncos have to trade for Sean Payton?

Denver had to trade for Payton ahead of the 2023 NFL season because he was still under contract with New Orleans. The Saints and Payton agreed to a five-year extension ahead of the 2019 NFL season and, despite his retirement, New Orleans still held his rights as a coach.

Sean Payton trade: Draft pick selections

The Saints kept the first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and used it to select defensive tackle Bryan Bresee at No. 29 overall.

New Orleans packaged the second-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft to move up in the second round in a deal with Green Bay. They ended up selecting cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry at No. 41 overall.

Denver traded the third-round pick they received in the deal to move up in the 2023 NFL Draft and select Iowa cornerback Riley Moss.

NFL head coaching trades

Payton became the eighth head coach in NFL history to be traded for draft picks. The other seven were:

1970: Baltimore Colts sign Don Shula from the Miami Dolphins and were forced by commissioner Pete Rozelle to give their first-round pick in the 1971 NFL draft to Miami.
1997: New England Patriots trade Bill Parcells to the New York Jets for a third- and fourth-round pick in the 1997 NFL Draft, a second-round pick in the 1998 NFL draft, and a first-round pick in the 1999 NFL draft.
1999: Green Bay Packers trade Mike Holmgren to the Seattle Seahawks for a second-round draft pick in the 1999 NFL draft.
2000: Jets trade Bill Belichick to the Patriots in the following deal:
- New York received the Patriots’ first-round pick in the 2000 NFL draft as well as their fourth- and seventh-round pick in the 2001 NFL draft.
- New England received Belichick and the Jets’ fifth-round pick in the 2001 NFL Draft and their seventh-round pick in the 2002 NFL draft.
2002: Oakland Raiders trade Jon Gruden to Tampa Bay for the Buccaneers’ first- and second-round pick in the 2002 NFL draft, their first-round pick in the 2003 NFL draft, and their second-round pick in the 2004 NFL draft.
2006: Jets trade Herm Edwards to the Kansas City Chiefs for a fourth-round pick in the 2006 NFL draft.
2019: Arizona Cardinals trade a seventh-round pick in the 2019 NFL draft and Bruce Arians to the Buccaneers for a sixth-round pick.