Cowboys Next Coach: Would Jerry Jones Pay $100 Million for Sean Payton?

If a Cowboys move at coach ever happens - and eventually it will Cowboys Nation now not only has Sean Payton's name; we also have Sean Payton's price tag.

FRISCO - First off, an apology is due. I promised I wouldn't spend the season speculating wildly about the idea of the Dallas Cowboys someday replacing coach Mike McCarthy with Sean Payton. I don't think it's fair to the reader and - especially when it comes to the inevitable in-game third-down failure and the immediate hoots of "Payton woulda made it!'', I don't think it's fair to McCarthy.

But maybe this is a bit different ... because the number is so large.

Dave Hyde of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel was first to report late last week that the Miami Dolphins' proposed deal offered this offseason to Payton would have been $20 million per year. SI.com reported on Monday that it actually would have been $100 million over four years.

Either way ... $100 million.

The deal (which reportedly would've also included Tom Brady to Miami) fell apart. But now the price tag is set, and so is the bar. Not just for Payton, but for every coach.

In the wake of his team's gut-wrenching, mistake-riddled Wild Card playoff loss, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones admitted, "I've got a lot to think about.'' Right about at this same time came news of Sean Payton leaving the New Orleans Saints ... and the connect-the-dots game to Dallas' doorstep wasn't difficult.

Sure, McCarthy has three years left on his contract and just led the Cowboys to a 12-5 record and an NFC East Championship and ... he works well with the Joneses as we move to 2022, but ...

Since 2006, Jerry has lamented Payton as the one that got away.

And what did Payton say about the connect-the-dots?

“There are going to be ... I can’t control … I felt like 10 years went by and we talked about the other team for a lot. And I get it, I understand it,” Payton said. “But, no, my plans are not to be coaching in 2022. And that’s just how I feel.”

That's for 2022. Payton has not, of course, closed the door on returning to the sideline after that. ... and surely returning to Dallas, where he was once an assistant, is on the list of possibilities. And in Dallas, like most places, the head coach's salary is said to be in the $5 million annual range.

But now? If a Cowboys move at coach ever happens - and eventually it will Cowboys Nation now not only has Sean Payton's name; we also have Sean Payton's price tag.

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