Story highlights New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton tells USA Today he "hates guns"

Will Smith, Payton's former player, was shot and killed Saturday night

(CNN) Less than three days after his former player was shot to death, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton publicly blasted gun laws in Louisiana and the United States.

"I hate guns," he told USA Today in a phone interview . "I find myself leaning to the right on some issues. But on this issue, I can't wrap my brain around it."

Payton, who helped lead the state's beloved Saints to their first Super Bowl in 2010, knows that his comments may make him unpopular in Louisiana.

His response?

"So be it."

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