From Matt Ramas (@matt_ramas):
Matt, I could be wrong, but I think the Chargers probably stick with Brandon Staley, with the progress the team showed—though I can understand why pairing Justin Herbert with Payton would be enticing. Also, would the team pay what it would take ($20 million-plus per) to get him? Or maybe he’d like the idea of getting to stay in Los Angeles (he’s lived in the South Bay this season) and coach Herbert so much that he’d take less?
I guess there’s a chance, but less of one with the Chargers.
As for the Cardinals, I’m just not sure he’d hitch himself to Kyler Murray. And, with the way Michael Bidwill spoke at his press conference the other day, it sounded like the Cardinals are a little more married to their structure (hiring the GM first, then the coach) than, say, Denver, which would, at least on the surface, make a run at Payton less likely. And I say that remembering in 2013 when the Chiefs blew up their best-laid plans to go get Andy Reid, so nothing’s impossible.
If you add all this together, I’d say there’s a better chance than people realize that Payton takes another year away from coaching. I know he 100% wants to coach again. But I also think he’s earned the right to be picky, and I don’t know that the right job is there for him in this particular cycle.
