The Saints made a smart move in not waiting until Wednesday to hire a head coach. General manager Mickey Loomis picked Sean Payton of the Cowboys out of Maurice Carthon of the Browns, Mike Sherman formerly of the Packers and Mike Martz formerly of the Rams. The reason why it wasn't wise to wait was because of the pace of hiring assistant coaches. Payton could have lost two or three assistants he wanted to hire had he waited. The Vikings have put together their entire safety. Eric Mangini is just starting to put his staff together. The Packers are heavily involved in getting their staff for Mike McCarthy. Payton's a good fit for the Saints because he's a bright, young offensive coach, and an offensive coach is probably needed. The Saints will probably be picking a quarterback with the second pick in the draft -- Vince Young of Texas or Matt Leinart of USC.

Lions meeting with Marinelli, Haslett: The Lions have Bucs defensive line coach Rod Marinelli meeting with owner William Clay Ford Wednesday in Detroit and plan to fly former Saints coach Jim Haslett that day to do the same. These are second interviews, giving everyone the idea president Matt Millen is ready to make his decision. The unavailability of Steelers offensive line coach Russ Grimm because of the Steelers' possible Super Bowl put the Lions in a position to probably make the choice Wednesday or Thursday at the latest. Haslett has the experience and edge as a former coordinator and a head coach. He may get the job Wednesday. The Lions officially ruled out Mike Singletary of the 49ers Tuesday. Interim coach Dick Jauron is still technically in the running, but he's not going to get the job.

Cameron, Linehan dueling for Rams post: Chargers offensive coordinator Cam Cameron is giving Scott Linehan of the Dolphins a good battle for the Rams head coaching job. Linehan finished the first wave of interviews with the lead. Cameron had a second interview Monday and the session went five hours. Cameron gave a strong presentation. It's going to be hard for Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera to top them because they are more advanced with their plans for the offense. Rivera is expected to finish third in the running. The only sleeper could be if the Rams make a late pitch to Chiefs offensive coordinator Al Saunders.

Locklear moving forward: After being released from jail on bail following an alleged domestic incident with his girlfriend, Seahawks right tackle Sean Locklear can try to put his mind on football starting Wednesday. The Seahawks plan to start him Sunday and he is expected to practice. A hip injury bothered him last week, and this week's arrest clearly will affect his concentration. Locklear had a surprisingly good season and was one of the better right tackles in the NFC this year.

Vikings considering Spielman: The Vikings interviewed ESPN.com's Rick Spielman Tuesday for the open job in the personnel office, working with new coach Brad Childress. Spielman was the former general manager of the Miami Dolphins. The Vikings are expected to meet with former Falcons vice president Ron Hill later this week. Another candidate is Rick Smith of the Broncos, but he can't interview until the Broncos are out of the playoffs.