I agree about that button. I'll be happy to explain to you why.
1. Asshole Face is very different than Jeff Fisher. Note that Asshole Face's DCs in New Orleans all had strong track records before signing with the Saints. Payton allowed them a lot of leeway to choose the defensive scheme and philosophy. This is not true of Fisher. Payton sticks to what he knows. He hires respected defensive minds to handle the defense. When evaluating that sort of thing, you have to consider whether the failure of the defense is due to the head coach not staying in his lane, due to the personnel, or due to bad hires. In Payton's case, it's due to the personnel. That's not something Payton has a lot of control over. Jeff Fisher left a lot of good pieces on the defensive side of the ball.
2. Mike Smith isn't being considered because he's a defensive coach. We need someone who can get the best out of Goff.
3. It's easy to criticize Payton for "only" having 5 winning seasons in 10 years as a HC. But the fact is that the Saints had only 7 winning seasons from the franchise's founding in 1967 until Payton was hired in 2006. The Saints were also 1-5 in the playoffs over that span of time. Payton went 6-4 in the playoffs in his 10 years there. The Saints were not ever considered a well-run franchise prior to Payton. Truthfully, they still aren't. Their GM, Mickey Loomis, has completely whiffed on the defensive side of the ball. It's easy to blame Payton for the defense, but he's not the guy with personnel control. He's certainly not hiring unproven defensive coordinators or interfering with them. Nor is he overly loyal to them. I think most people would consider it impressive to coach the Browns to 5 winning seasons in 10 years. When Payton got to New Orleans, they weren't a lot different than the Browns.
4. Payton also is very different than Fisher because Jeff Fisher has 6 winning seasons in 22 years. Asshole Face has 5 winning seasons in 10 years. That's not similar. Further, Payton's offenses finished among the best in the NFL year in and year out during his tenure in New Orleans. That's not true of Fisher's defenses. Claiming that Fisher and Payton are both very good on one side of the ball is simply not an accurate comparison. Payton is elite on one side of the ball. Fisher is merely good. Fisher's teams have finished in the top 10 in points allowed three times in 22 years as a HC. Payton's teams have finished top 2 in points scored four times in 10 years as a HC. There is no comparison.
5. Look at the pieces we have and what we need. We have a lot of talented pieces on defense. We have a #1 overall QB and a talented HB. We need OL help, WR help, and a little work on the defense. What does Payton specialize in? Developing QBs, finding WRs outside of the first round, and building effective OLs. Those are things he's consistently shown the ability to do in New Orleans. Asshole Face and the Rams fit together like a puzzle piece. The things we need are the things he does best. The things we have are the things he hasn't shown himself to be especially great at.
