Could Arch Manning lure Nick Saban out of retirement?

Nick Saban has won seven college football national championships. He doesn't have anything left to prove.

But what about the NFL?

Saban was 297-71-1 in college football as a head coach. He was 15-17 in two seasons as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins.

Rumors emerged recently about the possibility of Saban coming out of retirement to coach again. However, a return to college football doesn't make sense, unless it was back to Alabama. 

Yet, the NFL could be a different story — especially with the right quarterback — according to Colin Cowherd.

On the "Herd with Colin Cowherd," Cowherd revealed that the talk of Saban coming back to coaching "isn't a conspiracy theory."

Cowherd teased the Cleveland Browns as a possible destination. He said that Saban was "close" to Browns owner Jimmy Haslem, who is close to the Mannings.

There's a chance that Texas QB Arch Manning could be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Cowherd is hinting that if the Browns have the No. 1 overall pick, it's possible they could draft Manning, which would be enough to lure Saban out of retirement.

“This is the worst-kept secret in the South,” Cowherd said, stating Manning would be on the Cleveland Browns. “Haslam, Jimmy, owner of the Browns. Huge SEC, Tennessee booster, leans heavily on the Manning Family. Very close to the Manning Family…Arch Manning is a part of the Manning Family and this is where Nick Saban comes in. Saban is incredibly close to not only Jimmy Haslam, but Saban is close to the Manning Family as well. So, Saban, if he could land a top quarterback, I’m told…he would take a phone call for the NFL. There are two teams guaranteed to be awful this year in the NFL, Cleveland and the Saints."

It's possible. Saban didn't have a franchise quarterback with the Dolphins, which was a big reason why his NFL coaching record was below .500.

Saban's also 73 years old. Yet, so is Pete Carroll, who just took over the Raiders. So, maybe Saban wants to win a Super Bowl title.

Carroll, Barry Switzer and Jimmy Johnson are the only head coaches who have won both a national title and Super Bowl championship. It's possible Saban sees the chance to coach Arch Manning as his best shot to get a Super Bowl ring.