Former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton interviewed with the Houston Texans on Monday night regarding their head-coaching vacancy, multiple media outlets reported.

The Texans fired first-year head coach Lovie Smith on Jan. 9, a day after the team completed a 3-13-1 season.

Payton, 59, is the biggest name available in the coaching market, but he is still under contract with New Orleans after stepping aside as the Saints’ coach in January 2022 after 15 seasons.

Earlier Monday, Payton said that the price for an NFL team to hire him in this cycle would likely be a mid- to late-first-round draft pick. Payton made the comments on “The Herd” talk show with host Colin Cowherd.

“Mickey Loomis and I have talked already about it. I think ultimately the compensation for the Saints will be a mid- or later first-round pick,” Payton said on the show.

Loomis, the Saints’ general manager, has informed teams what the compensation would be for Payton, whose contract with the Saints expires at the conclusion of the 2024 season. However, that compensation hadn’t been made public.

In addition to the Texans, the Arizona Cardinals and Denver Broncos sought permission to speak with Payton about their respective head-coaching positions. Payton also told Cowherd that he would speak with Panthers owner David Tepper in Carolina later this week.

Payton had a 152-89 record with the Saints and led them to a win in Super Bowl XLIV following the 2009 season, the only championship in franchise history.

–Field Level Media