JT the Brick

Bill Parcells has temporally retired from the NFL and will be back on the sidelines sooner than you think. He is once again burned out and disappointed after the Dallas Cowboys lost in dramatic fashion 21-20 in the first round of the playoffs to the Seattle Seahawks.

“The Tuna” obviously is in need of a long vacation, must recharge his tired mind and distance himself from the traveling circus that is the Cowboys.

Do you actually think that Parcells would walk away from the game for good after Tony Romo fumbled the snap on a potential game-wining field goal which ended up costing the franchise its first playoff win since 1996?

Parcells is a student and historian of the pro football universe and will never let that image of Romo being tackled on the 2-yard line in Seattle be the last memory that most fans have of him. That play and loss were one of the top five low points in Parcells’ coaching career. He has to wipe that image from the minds of everyone who believed that he was still a great coach who had another championship run ahead of him.

Similar to former NBA coach Larry Brown, who seems to resign or retire from an NBA franchise every time he hits an emotional bottom, Parcells continues to make personal and professional decisions after heart-breaking losses that haunt him. He did a disservice to Jerry Jones and the Cowboys organization by waiting a few weeks to retire while several high-profile coaching candidates were available for Jones to interview and  eventually fill his position.

We all know that Parcells wanted no part of Terrell Owens in Dallas and he probably regrets going along with Jones’s decision to bring the loud mouth to the Cowboys.  Owens led NFL wide receivers with 13 touchdown receptions, but dropped big passes throughout the season and was a huge distraction off the field.

Jones understands talent and couldn’t avoid the temptation of bring T.O to Dallas because he needed a playmaker who could also take the franchise to a higher level when it came to publicity. Unfortunately, all of the added media attention wore down Parcells and zapped much of his legendary energy. It was clear that both Owens and Parcells couldn’t exist together for another off-season that always includes a circus-type atmosphere when training camp begins.

The instability of Owens and the bad press that followed him to Dallas are the main reason  Parcells is taking a break. If the Cowboys were getting to the NFC championship game, I think “Tuna” would have stuck around for another season or two to tie up his legacy with another Lombardi Trophy for “America’s Team.”        

Look for Parcells to be back in 2008 as head coach for the New York Giants or the San Diego Chargers.

Let’s begin with the Giants. Location, location, location! Parcells loves New York/New Jersey and it would be a storybook ending to his illustrious career if he ended his journey where it began with two Super Bowl wins with the Giants. His family and friends would love him to spend more time around the people that care about him the most and they all live within an hour of each other in the New York tri-state area. The G-Men train in Albany, N.Y., and he would love to be a short car ride away from Saratoga Springs where he already owns a home and could stop by the race track. A new challenge in the Meadowlands could get Parcells back to the Super Bowl before 70.