Parcells

by Bill Parcells

  Mara called the receptionist at the main lobby to find out if Young had left the building. She acknowledged seeing the rotund GM hustling out the door. Since cell phones weren’t yet common, Mara called the Sheraton’s front desk in an effort to intercept Young, but the Giants owner had no luck. As a final measure Mara asked to be dialed in to Fassel’s room. When the Cardinals coordinator picked up, Mara asked if Young happened to be present. Acknowledging that he was, Fassel handed the phone to the GM.

  Mara asked softly, “Have you offered the job to Fassel yet?”

  Young replied, “Yes, I have.”

  “Has he accepted it?”

  “Yes.”

  Mara said nothing. He would not retract an offer extended on ownership’s behalf.

  • • •

  On Sunday, January 19, one week before Super Bowl XXXI, the Patriots flew to New Orleans to check into the city’s flagship Marriott. By Monday morning, just ahead of New England’s first practice in town, the upcoming game versus Green Bay seemed like almost an afterthought as the Boston Globe published an explosive story by Will McDonough under a banner headline declaring “Parcells to Leave.” Opening up a Pandora’s box for the media to dissect, the article cited the reason for Parcells’s imminent departure: his poor relationship with Kraft. Robert Fraley had contended that his client was free to coach another team in 1997 without Kraft’s receiving compensation, so the article’s tone made it seem as if Parcells was being held hostage. And McDonough broached the possibility of a “nasty” court battle after Parcells’s contract expired on February 1.

  Suddenly, the strained relationship between New England’s owner and head coach was out in the open. The sideshow involving Parcells’s future turned into the main event, heightened by coverage from a press corps numbering in the hundreds. Speculation about the Jets being his next team shifted to a sense of a fait accompli, as Fraley was quoted calling Gang Green a “topic for maybe someday in the future.” Despite going a league-worst 1-15 under Rich Kotite, whose 4-28 tenure prompted his resignation, the Jets had rebuffed several head-coaching and GM applicants during the playoffs.

  Taking exception to McDonough’s article, Kraft responded with a statement that castigated Fraley for delving into his client’s contract only days before the Super Bowl. Kraft reiterated his original agreement to speak with Parcells after the season, and expressed hope for his 1997 return—without GM authority. Of course Parcells would never stay under those circumstances, which kept the situation inflamed for his scheduled press conference on Monday night.

  Parcells spent much of the forty-five-minute session being grilled by journalists and criticizing some of them for their assumptions. Deeming his contract status “old news,” Parcells angrily denied the existence of a three-year, $10 million deal reportedly waiting for him to run the Jets. Parcells also rejected the notion that he was behind McDonough’s story, but some reporters who felt that Parcells didst protest too much kept up their aggressive queries.

  Parcells disagreed that the controversy would affect his preparation for Super Bowl XXXI or pose a distraction to his team. Only a few feet away, though, some top Patriots players were being bombarded with questions about their coach’s future. They vouched that Parcells had shielded them from his contract situation all season long, but some of them acknowledged the likelihood of his departure based on McDonough’s story. Growing weary of the media barrage, Drew Bledsoe scolded reporters for overlooking the game. Green Bay’s players similarly expressed fatigue at being asked about Parcells, and complained that their own coach, Mike Holmgren, wasn’t receiving his due as one of the NFL’s top strategists.

  Following the bombshell article, Parcells pressed his coaches and players as hard as ever. New England’s practice at Tulane University consisted of two and a half hours of physical contact, with players in pads in near-eighty-degree temperatures. Conversely, Mike Holmgren’s practice at the New Orleans Saints facility lasted only an hour, while his Packers wore shorts. Over the ensuing days, though, the media stayed on the theme of Parcells’s imminent departure due to differences with Kraft. Some pundits viewed the head coach as an egomaniac and hypocrite who placed his own status above his team’s goals. But another narrative cast Kraft as a dilettante who deserved blame for clashing with a legendary coach. Kraft complained to one friend, “This should be a great week for us, but he’s sticking the knife in my back and twisting it.”

  Kraft’s sons, who worked as Patriots executives, despised Parcells, convinced that he was trying to make their father look foolish. The owner’s family and inner circle occasionally used a demeaning nickname among themselves when referring to Parcells: “Fatty.” But on Tuesday, the primary day for media availability, the two men surprised observers by strolling together across the Superdome’s gridiron. Kraft smiled as Parcells related some Giants anecdotes from Super Bowl XXI and XXV. Their interaction seemed to contradict the stories dominating Super Bowl coverage, but those who knew the inner thoughts of both men realized they were being frenemies.

  During Parcells’s Q&A, reporters focused on his relationship with Kraft, but Parcells responded as if the media coverage was much ado about nothing. “Fellas, whenever we see each other, we talk. It’s not like we’re from some foreign countries or something. It’s funny. I get a kick out of this. It’s so ludicrous.”

  Asked to rate the relationship from 1 to 10, Parcells responded, “It’s fine.” A reporter suggested a 5, but the Tuna didn’t bite. “It’s fine.”

  Meanwhile, a sign, “R. Kraft,” in the stands of the Superdome alerted the media to his availability. Most owners whose teams made it to the Super Bowl preferred to remain in the background. One exception was Jerry Jones, the Dallas Cowboys kingpin, whose proactive nature had prompted a bitter divorce from Jimmy Johnson after the head coach won a second consecutive Super Bowl in 1994. At a postgame cocktail party Jones declared that “five hundred coaches” could have captured those Super Bowls with the roster he had assembled. Jones later explained his disparaging comments as “whiskey talking,” but the inflammatory episode cemented the enmity that had occasionally flared during their partnership.

  The parallels to Kraft and Parcells were striking. At Kraft’s press conference, the owner said of Parcells, “I’m saying right on the record I don’t dislike him; I like him. He’s fun to be with most of the time.” Kraft credited Parcells with giving him important insight into the NFL, and pointed out that the two even went out for dinner once. But when asked to predict Parcells’s return, Kraft declined. “I would say he is mercurial. Whatever he’s feeling at this moment, he might feel something different in a day or two.”

  With media obsession about their fractured relationship unabated, Kraft and Parcells held a joint press conference on Wednesday. Using humor to deflect the press’s focus, the pair announced that Parcells had signed a ten-year contract to manage the Kraft family’s paper mill. The owner even praised his head coach’s choice of a black V-neck sweater. Parcells responded, “Gee, thanks, Bob. My daughter gave it to me for Christmas.”

  When a reporter asked if the sweater was cashmere, Kraft interjected with more levity. “I don’t think Bill’s a cashmere type of guy.”

  However, only a few minutes after the jovial joint appearance, Kraft hinted at his genuine feelings to a New York Times reporter, Gerald Eskenazi, who had finagled a one-on-one interview. Providing some background information, Kraft emphasized that Parcells’s contract was ironclad in blocking his ability to join the Jets in 1997 without the Patriots receiving steep compensation such as draft picks. Then, smiling, Kraft whispered an off-the-record remark: “He’s not as smart as he thinks.” Eskenazi was surprised that Kraft would ridicule Parcells to a sportswriter, particularly one from New York. Although the Times reporter didn’t use the quote, it provided context for his story.

  Two days later and forty-eight hours before the Super Bowl, Kraft faxed Paul Tagliabue a copy of Parcells’s contract to prove that New England was entitled t
o compensation if he coached elsewhere in 1997. Kraft suspected that the Jets had struck a deal in principle with Parcells, violating the league’s anti-tampering rules covering employees under contract. Weeks later Patriots executives would exercise their legal right to review itemized activity from team-owned phones. According to the club, Parcells’s phone usage leading up to the big game revealed several calls to Hempstead, Long Island, the location of the Jets headquarters. Parcells, though, denies telephoning the Jets before Super Bowl XXXI.

  • • •

  Game day brought windless temperatures in the low seventies as 72,301 spectators headed to the Louisiana Superdome. Parcells maintained his pregame ritual, arriving at the stadium hours before the 5:30 p.m. kickoff. When the Patriots entered their locker room, they felt a sense of normalcy as Parcells interacted with players in his inimitable way. Moments before the national anthem, Willie McGinest, whom Parcells had drafted fourth overall in 1994, approached him on the sidelines. “I hope you don’t go, Coach.”

  Parcells replied, “Regardless of where I am, you’re always going to be my guy.” The response deflated McGinest, who had been skeptical about Parcells’s exiting after leading New England to the Super Bowl.

  McGinest recalls, “I always said it wasn’t going to happen because I didn’t want him to go. But the relationship between him and ownership was dysfunctional. I don’t know if Kraft learned from that, but Belichick has control of football operations [with the Patriots]. That’s all Parcells wanted.”

  On Green Bay’s second play from scrimmage, wideout Andre Rison executed a nifty route to break free from cornerback Otis Smith, who was left spinning like a top. Brett Favre slung a deep pass to his wide-open receiver for a 54-yard touchdown less than one minute into the game. The situation worsened for New England only two plays later when Drew Bledsoe tossed an interception. Although the NFL’s top offense was held to a 37-yard field goal, the Patriots seemed headed for a blowout loss, down 10–0 early.

  Even before the significant deficit, New England had placed the onus on Drew Bledsoe to overcome the NFL’s best pass defense. Leading up to the Super Bowl, the Patriots put up a strategic smoke screen by publicly emphasizing the need to run the ball. Green Bay expected Parcells to try controlling the clock with the same approach he had used to win the 1991 Super Bowl versus Buffalo. Instead, Bledsoe’s aggressive passing off play action delivered an element of surprise similar to Simms’s gunslinging in the 1987 Super Bowl versus Denver.

  Despite the bleak outlook in the first quarter, the Patriots stuck to their big gun, and Bledsoe rifled several sharp passes while guiding his team to Green Bay’s 1-yard line. On the next play, with Green Bay looking for the run, he zipped a short pass to Keith Byars that cut the lead to 10–7.

  The score was unchanged when Bledsoe got the ball back with 4:44 left in the period, as he continued to baffle Green Bay with play-action throws, screen passes, and even rollouts. On third-and-1 Bledsoe faked another handoff before passing to Terry Glenn, who dove to Green Bay’s 4-yard line, punctuating a 44-yard reception. The highlight-reel play set up Ben Coates’s touchdown on yet another pass, giving New England a surprising 14–10 lead.

  The combined points were the most in the first quarter of any Super Bowl. Bledsoe’s scintillating stretch since his early interception made New England’s offensive game plan look brilliant, and Parcells appeared to have a legitimate chance at becoming the only person in NFL history to win Lombardi Trophies for two different franchises. Days before the game, he had joked to a friend, “The price of tuna has just gone up.” Bledsoe ended up throwing fifteen times in the period, three more than the previous Super Bowl record set by Joe Montana in 1990 versus Denver.

  Early in the second quarter, though, Favre responded with an explosive play from Green Bay’s 21. On first down the Packers employed a three-wideout set, and Antonio Freeman beat strong safety Lawyer Milloy off the line of scrimmage to haul in an 81-yard touchdown pass, the longest reception in Super Bowl history. The Packers reasserted their offensive firepower by also scoring on their next two possessions: a 31-yard field goal and 2-yard run by Favre to lead 27–14 at halftime.

  New England entered the intermission with only 14 rushing yards on seven attempts, but Boy Wonder, a touchdown machine during the regular season and playoffs, finally scored late in the third quarter. His 18-yard run cut Green Bay’s lead to 27–21, once again making the outcome uncertain as Adam Vinatieri prepared to kick off.

  Wideout Desmond Howard was coming off perhaps the greatest season ever by an NFL punt returner, parlaying three into touchdowns before scoring on another one in the playoffs versus San Francisco. Against the Patriots he had set up Green Bay’s first two scores with punt returns of 32 and 34 yards. At halftime Howard predicted to teammates that the Patriots would avoid putting the ball in his hands the rest of the way to prevent a touchdown return. So as the pigskin from Vinatieri’s kick fearlessly hurtled toward Howard inches from the goal line, he felt indignation that New England wasn’t avoiding him.

  After catching the ball between the hash marks at the 1, Howard burst up the middle of the gridiron. Abetted by wideout Don Beebe’s sharp block near the 30, Howard zoomed to his left, past New England’s kick-coverage unit. By the time Howard reached midfield, sprinting across from Parcells on the sideline, pursuers might as well have been moving in slow motion. His 99-yard return, a Super Bowl record, came with 3:30 left in the period. Only seventeen seconds after Martin’s touchdown, the Packers had reclaimed their 13-point lead, and momentum. The kick-return touchdown, Howard’s first in a five-year pro career, all but ended New England’s hopes for an upset victory. A 2-point conversion put the Patriots down by two touchdowns, a seemingly insurmountable deficit against a formidable opponent that had recaptured its mojo.

  Realizing that the Patriots lacked a commitment to the run, Green Bay’s defense had stopped biting on play-action fakes. And on the Patriots’ ensuing possession, Reggie White sacked Drew Bledsoe two consecutive times, further demoralizing New England. For the rest of the game the Patriots never crossed midfield. Neither team scored in the final period, making Parcells’s future the only drama left.

  With a 35–21 victory, Green Bay captured its first Vince Lombardi Trophy in twenty-nine years. And in an outcome determined by special teams, Desmond Howard finished with 244 return yards, tying a Super Bowl mark while setting a record with 90 punt-return yards. He became the first special-teams player to earn the Super Bowl MVP as New England’s special-teams unit was outplayed for perhaps the first time all season.

  In New England’s gloomy locker room minutes after the loss, Parcells addressed his players briefly while owner Robert Kraft observed from the perimeter.

  “You can’t win games doing the things that we did. We turned the ball over too much, and had very untimely penalties.”

  Linebacker Willie McGinest flashed back to his exchange with Parcells just before the national anthem and started to cry.

  “I was already emotional because we had just lost,” McGinest recalls. “And seeing the guy who drafted me, one of my teachers, getting ready to leave made everything bad. He was like another father because I know he genuinely cared about me.

  “I didn’t know how the Patriots were going to replace him. Who’s going to come in now and fill that void? That’s what you’re thinking as a player. Who can motivate us, do everything he did? I couldn’t think of anybody.”

  Around the same time that the Patriots boarded their team plane for Boston, Parcells took a return flight with family members and Robert Fraley. Two days later, Paul Tagliabue announced that he would mediate the contract dispute. Since targeting Parcells late in the 1996 season, with Belichick as a backup plan, the Jets were patiently awaiting a resolution before officially contacting him. Owner Leon Hess and team president Steve Gutman remained convinced that the best person to resurrect their dying franchise was the coach who had done the same for the Giants and Patriots.

  The NFL c
ommissioner wasted little time making a ruling. On Wednesday, January 29, he issued a statement to the effect that permitting Parcells to coach elsewhere in 1997 without compensating the Patriots ran “contrary to common sense and Massachusetts law.” Parcells’s contract explicitly barred him from coaching another team or holding a “comparable position” before 1998 unless New England granted permission. So now the remaining issue was whether the Patriots could reach an agreement on compensation with the Jets, who owned the top overall pick in the 1997 draft. Pointing out Parcells’s three Super Bowl appearances in twelve years, Kraft publicly established steep requirements for a deal. “I’m speaking now to the Jets. If you have an interest in Bill, please don’t trade the number one pick. That must be part of the solution.”

  On Thursday the Jets telephoned Kraft, but failed to reach a deal. Regardless, Parcells scheduled a press conference for the following day at Patriots headquarters to announce his departure. When his contract expired on Friday, January 31, 1997, he delivered a letter to Kraft in his office, expressing his desire to discontinue employment. Because only a mutual decision could trigger a 1997 return, the step voided the fifth year of his contract.

  As Parcells headed for his press conference, Kraft stopped him and said, “You know we can still work something out for you to stay.”

  But the head coach politely declined, and kept walking to an auditorium packed with sports journalists. Parcells explains why he passed on Kraft’s last-minute olive branch: “I was mentally in a different place. I don’t mean with a different team. I mean just a different mental frame of mind.”

  Dressed in a suit and tie, Parcells held a one-hour Q&A that amounted to his resignation. He described Kraft as being supportive overall since purchasing the team in 1994, but crystallized their incompatibility by quoting an unnamed person. “A friend once told me, ‘If you’re going to cook the meal, they ought to let you shop for the groceries.’ I guess that best explains our philosophical differences.”