LOOK: Sean Payton does special goodbye gesture for Saints media

Sean Payton may have had an abrupt exit from his longtime tenure as the New Orleans Saints head coach, but he took time to make a rare gesture toward the media that covered the team shortly after the news broke.

Thanks to Sean Payton for a terrific send-off to the local #NOLA media corps. pic.twitter.com/mRSvBsTI3D

— Jeff Duncan (@JeffDuncan_) February 6, 2022

Jeff Duncan is a longtime member of the NFL media and has covered the Saints and for much of his tenure.

Since the tribute was shared on Twitter, of course a troll had to chime in with a snarky comment aimed at Duncan’s coverage of the Saints and Payton 10 years ago.

“My unsolicited advice to you is get over it. I know it kills you that Sean Payton and I have a great relationship and have had one for years. There’s a reason for that.”

In a culture where it often seems like the media is the enemy — mostly in politics but it happens in sports all the time, just look at Jimbo Fisher’s rant last week — this was refreshing, to say the least.

Is Payton truly retiring?

Payton stunned the NFL world and entire community of New Orleans on Tuesday when the news broke he was stepping away from his 16-year tenure as the Saints’ frontman.

There’s been plenty of speculation about Payton’s reasoning for saying goodbye to the Saints right now and rumors have been swirling about his potential motives, meaning he may be taking a break with a hope to coach for another NFL franchise in the near future.

For now, it’s all speculation when it comes to Sean Payton.

Still, Andrew Sciliano captured a quote during Payton’s media session on Tuesday. It’s telling to say the least.

Sean Payton – “ ‘Retirement’ I don’t think is the right word today."

— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) January 25, 2022

Sean Payton reveals Saints unusual tactic to keep him around

New Orleans Saints fans and the NFL community is in shock with the news that Sean Payton is stepping away from his position as the Saints’ head coach.

Payton met with members of the media shortly after the news broke and shared some interesting insight into the behind-the-scenes conversations between him and the Saints’ brass.

“Last week I had a great, tough conversation with Mickey Loomis, Mrs. Benson and Dennis Laushcha relative to looking ahead to what I want to do, and you know, Mickey and I have been together for 16 years so I think that was challenging more because of our friendship more than our professional relationship.”

The 16-year New Orleans Saints head coach then shared an interesting idea that came down from ownership in an attempt to keep Sean Payton on board.

“You know Mrs. B. was awesome, she said, go away for three months and come back to training camp and we will be ready to go,” Payton added. And that sounded pretty good actually,” Sean Payton said with a grin.

“But I’m glad she told me to spend some time away and give this some thought, because it’s certainly a big decision and it certainly effects a lot of people. It’s not often, you as a coach, have the opportunity to possibly leave. It’s certainly something I hadn’t really thought about over the years. We coach, we coach, and we coach and at some point they tell you to leave. And as difficult as being fired is, it sure seems easier to thank everyone and move on your merry way.”

Sean Payton has become synonymous with the city of New Orleans–and while there is already wild speculation about his intentions moving forward– it’s clear this was an emotional decision for one of the brightest minds in the NFL