Patrick Sean Payton (born December 29, 1963 in San Mateo, California) is the head coach of the Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints. He was previously the quarterbacks coach and later assistant head coach of the Dallas Cowboys until being hired by the Saints on January 17, 2006.

On January 6, 2007, after the 2006 NFL season, his first with the Saints, he was chosen as the recipient of the AP (Associated Press) NFL Coach of the Year Award, obtaining 44 out of 50 votes for the honor. He was also honored as Motorolas NFL Coach of the Year Award, as selected by NFL.com voters.