With the final weekend of the NFL season drawing near, I felt obligated to write on the NFL, due to the fact that it may be my last opportunity as a journalist.
No, I will not dissect the Colts and the Bears, as too many writers have done that, ad nauseum.
I will not talk about the glorious story of the first two African-American head coaches in the Super Bowl.
I am not trying to minimize the contributions of messers Dungy and Smith, but it is not a historic day in the ongoing civil rights movement.
No, that historic day will come when things like this happen, and we don’t need to mention them incessantly.
No, let’s focus rather on Bill Parcells and the fact that he stepped down from the Dallas Cowboys a week or so ago.
This is most likely Parcells’ last coaching gig, as it should be, but we are losing a legend in the coaching ranks.
Parcells and Bill Walsh were trendsetters in the late 1980s to early 1990s and their “coaching lineages” live on in constant competition, the same way you hear about the Belicheck coaching tree, or the way you SHOULD hear about the Dungy coaching tree.
He is also one of only five coaches to take two different teams to the Super Bowl.
Don Shula, Dick Vermeil, Dan Reeves and Mike Holmgren are the others.
Parcells was also named a coach of the All-1990s team.
If for no other reason, the fact that he tolerated Phil Simms for all those years and survived, makes Parcells worth his weight, which is a lot.
He coached the likes of Lawrence Phillips, Harry Carson, Simms, Drew Bledsoe (twice), Terry Glenn, Terrell Owens, and of course, Hall of Famer Tony Romo.
Yes, Parcells undoubtedly is one of the most successful coaches of our time and it is sad to see a man of his talent and caliber walk away from the game.
However, I do respect the fact that Parcells knew when to walk away.
Now, I am sure Parcells doesn’t retire if Romo can do the same task I used to do daily in the eighth grade, even if it were on a much smaller scale.
That’s not how it transpired, and, here we are, with me respecting Parcells.
From an outsider’s perspective, it seems as though Parcells knew his time had come.
He realized that he was no longer able to connect with the people that he worked with on a daily basis.
Sure, his product was there every week, but it was not what it used to be, or what it would have been if the right person had been in charge.
The NFL is not what is used to be and therefore coaching is not what it used to be either.
While Parcells is a legend, he was out of touch with his surroundings and was not getting the job done in a way that it needed to be.
It was clear he was going to struggle from the onset; people in charge just chose to ignore the quality of the outsider they were bringing in.
More importantly, the right answer to lead this franchise this year, in an effort to build it long term was sitting in house; they just chose to ignore him: Sean Payton.
Yes, it would seem that the Cowboys will now have to start over next year, and it appears that they are leaning toward bringing in the wrong person again; most likely setting the organization back even further than it was this year.
But, again, I have to give it up to Parcells.
It wasn’t his fault management put the wrong person in place and, even though he applied for the job, he recognizes now that he was out of touch with his surroundings and was not going to be successful going forward.
I guess you have to wish that, some of the other leaders around the sports world, and outside of the sports world for that matter, would recognize the clues that their time has come and perhaps they best leave their position, for the best interest of everyone.
Parcells taught football players a lot over the years, and for that he will remembered.
However, the way he gracefully bowed out should be noticed by more than just football people. He did it right, up until the end, which is more than some people can claim.
Parcells will be missed by his peers, who respected his work.
