Is Tuna really staying in South Beach?
Miami Herald NFL columnist Armando Salguero has his doubts, which he expresses in this piece from today's newspaper.
It's a highly interesting scenario:
As part of his four-year contract with the Dolphins, Parcells negotiated an opt-out clause in the event that team owner Wayne Huizenga, who lured Parcells to Miami after last season, sold the team.
Well, Huizenga has sold nearly his entire stake in the team to New York real estate developer Steve Ross. The deal is expected to be completed in the coming days; once the contracts are signed, Parcells has 30 days to exercise his opt-out clause.
There have been signals from Huizenga, Ross and even some players, including linebacker Joey Porter, that Parcells is staying with the organization. But there have been no public statements from Parcells himself, which leaves you to wonder whether the Tuna will actually stay. Or else declare himself a free agent executive and/or coach.
Consider Parcells' past history of ownership changes, and you'll see why Dolphins fans should not be under any assumptions about Tuna's future:
* A few months after Parcells won his second Super Bowl with the Giants after the 1990, Giants co-owner Tim Mara sold his 50 percent stake in the team to Robert Tisch. Parcells, who was extremely close to Mara, stepped down in May, 1991.
* When Parcells joined the Patriots as head coach in 1993, he was hired by then owner James Orthwein, who eventually sold the team to current owner Robert Kraft. After the 1996 season, with one year remaining on his contract, Parcells walked. He soon became head coach of the Jets.
* After three seasons as Jets' head coach, Parcells stepped down and named Bill Belichick his successor. A day later, Belichick issued his infamous "I, BB, resign as HC of the NYJ" letter. Two weeks after that, the Jets were sold to Woody Johnson. Parcells spent one season as the Jets' general manager before resigning his post.
Tuna eventually came back to coach the Cowboys, and walked away on his own after working four seasons under Jerry Jones.
The lesson in all this: Never, never, never, never ... did I say never? ... be assured of what Parcells will do.
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