Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 1320 of 1503)

Early Wednesday morning it appeared that Bill Parcells would be heading to the Atlanta Falcons to become the V.P. of football operations. By Wednesday afternoon, Parcells changed his mind and is now considering an offer to join the Miami Dolphins front office.

Team owner Arthur Blank issued the following statement:

“Late last night it was revealed to the media by a source outside the Falcons that we were close to reaching an agreement with Bill Parcells to lead the club’s football operations.

Prior to the information becoming public, we had reached an agreement in principle with Parcells, and we met with him this morning to complete the contract. At that time, we were made aware by Parcells that he was considering a revised offer from the Miami Dolphins. He later informed us that he would not be signing a contract with us.

Shocker, you mean Bill Parcells changed his mind? Wait three more hours and word will spread that he’s heading into the NHL or something. At least the fleebag waited until Arthur Blank got on a plane and traveled all the way up to New York before telling him that he changed his mind. It’s not as if Blank hasn’t had enough problems to deal with this year.

Update: Parcells signed a four-year contract to become the Dolphins’ executive vice president of football operations. If he completes two of those four years, I’ll be shocked.

Bill Parcells is on the verge of accepting a deal to oversee the football operations for the Atlanta Falcons, according to the New York Daily News.

“I think I probably will do it,” Parcells said by phone from his home in Saratoga. “The job description is to be the football operations overseer. We still have a little work to do, but I don’t think it’s anything major. I don’t expect any real deal-breaker. I don’t think there will be any major hangups.”

“I’m going to oversee the football operation, Parcells said. “I’m going to hire a general manager if the deal is finalized in Atlanta. We are going to hire a coach and talk to all the coaches who are there. It’s going to be a collective effort. The triangle is going to be the GM, the coach and Bill Parcells. I’m also going to include Rich McKay if he wants to stay in the business.

“Under no circumstances is Bill Parcells ever going to return to the field.”

Love the third-person talk, Bill. This is a bold and risky move by Falcons’ owner Arthur Blank. On one hand, Parcells will bring much needed leadership, direction and credibility to a franchise in desperate need of all three. However, this was also a man who took the Patriots to the Super Bowl in 1995, while also negotiating to become the next head coach of the New York Jets. If that doesn’t sound familiar (ahem, Bobby Petrino) Falcons, I don’t know what will.

For better or worse, however, the “Big Tuna” will bring a new look to the Falcons. And after the year they’ve had, that certainly isn’t a bad thing.

Bobby Petrino certainly wasn’t the first NFL head coach to run back to the college game with his tail between his legs, but why do so many college coaches fail in the pros? In my latest column, I take a closer look while offering up a bit of advice for NFL owners and GMs: leave NFL coaching to NFL coaches.