Was the Saints' Front Office (e.g., Loomis) Fleeced on the Sean Payton Trade?

If you go back and listen to the interviews/podcast with Payton and Loomis, what both have said is pretty consistent. If you remember, Payton went on vacation after the 2021 season and no one heard from him. Didn't answer calls, text, etc. He needed time away to think about the decision. He resigns when he comes back because he was "burnt out." He even talked about everything that went into it, including the feeling there was a "black cloud" over the Saints regarding the league with Bounty Gate and the NFC Championship no-call.

The bigger question is did he want to come back to the Saints after the year out? There is info out there that he was open to it. He was open to coming back to the Saints, but Loomis felt Payton left and he was loyal to Dennis Allen after last season. That is the crazy part to me. If this is the case, sticking with Allen over Payton after last season was a horrible decision. Then it began a negotiation of what the trade was worth, which Payton was a part of. To me, the leverage was lost when they weren't open to taking him back and don't start with the loyalty issue. The Cubs just fired a coach because a better one became available. They had no reason to be loyal to Allen after last season.