Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

7DnBrnc53
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Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by 7DnBrnc53 »

I was listening to one of Chris "Mad Dog" Russo's past shows on You Tube the other day, and I found out something really interesting: Apparently, Bill Parcells didn't want to go to the Jets (there's a shock). He wanted to return to the Giants in 1997 (after he left NE). However, George Young didn't want him back, and Wellington Mara sided with Young.
sheajets
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by sheajets »

Parcells didn't have to come to the Jets. And he initially couldn't leave New England in 1997 as he was under contract until 1998 and couldn't coach elsewhere. He resigned and then took a job as some sort of consultant to the Jets with Belichick as placeholder coach. So he was already "in" the organization. But he couldn't coach until 1998. New England needed to be given compensation for Parcells by the Giants if they wanted him. Kraft was threatening legal action for the consultant stunt

Something seems not quite right about this. There was no easy way to just "bring Bill back"

Also it's extremely doubtful Parcells would've coached anywhere where he wasn't also the GM. Which wouldn't have been with the Giants. Leaning that this is likely a tall tale
Last edited by sheajets on Thu Oct 13, 2022 2:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Brian wolf
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by Brian wolf »

Young might have miscalculated on that one because he might have gotten Belichick as well but at least with Parcells or Belichick, the Giants wouldnt have been embarrassed in the 2000/01 SB, had they gotten that far.
JWL
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by JWL »

7DnBrnc53 wrote: Apparently, Bill Parcells didn't want to go to the Jets (there's a shock).
Well, Parcells resided in NJ so not sure why him avoiding the Jets would have been a thing.

Also, did the Jets cast a spell on Parcells to lure him in?
sheajets
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by sheajets »

JWL wrote:
7DnBrnc53 wrote: Apparently, Bill Parcells didn't want to go to the Jets (there's a shock).
Well, Parcells resided in NJ so not sure why him avoiding the Jets would have been a thing.

Also, did the Jets cast a spell on Parcells to lure him in?
There was a lot of whispers around that time that the Jets and Parcells were in contact during the season even. Right through the Super Bowl. I do remember one instance a few years ago Mike Francesa (who was very close to Parcells back then) almost let this slip and then quickly backtracked.
Brian wolf
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by Brian wolf »

To this day, I still believe Parcells regrets putting the ball in Bledsoe's hands rather than Martin's for that 96/97 SB. Yes, Martin struggled during the game but would have done better with more carries until the defense settled down. Still, in 1997, Parcells turned the Jets from laughingstock to a decent team before giving the fans a great 98 season that came close but no cigar with the Broncos giving Elway a great send-off ... I think the Jets would have beaten the Falcons but not the Vikings in the SB ... Interesting to speculate ...
7DnBrnc53
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by 7DnBrnc53 »

Another interesting Parcells tidbit I found out about: Someone has posted ESPN's pre-game show for SB 25 (a Bills' fan site). At the 35 minute mark, Fred Edelstein comes on with Chris Berman to discuss goings on around the NFL at the time. Berman asked him what Parcells was planning on doing (remember, he left the Giants in May of that year). Edelstein said that Parcells secretly accepted Atlanta's job before SB 21, but the Giants found out and blocked the move.
sheajets
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by sheajets »

7DnBrnc53 wrote:Another interesting Parcells tidbit I found out about: Someone has posted ESPN's pre-game show for SB 25 (a Bills' fan site). At the 35 minute mark, Fred Edelstein comes on with Chris Berman to discuss goings on around the NFL at the time. Berman asked him what Parcells was planning on doing (remember, he left the Giants in May of that year). Edelstein said that Parcells secretly accepted Atlanta's job before SB 21, but the Giants found out and blocked the move.


Amazing how flighty he was. How he could never settle in somewhere, have success, and build something long and lasting...always easily seduced/lured...would commit and then back off things. Pinning him down anywhere was impossible
Brian wolf
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by Brian wolf »

Had Testaverde not gotten injured in 1999, I think he would have stayed with the Jets but that .500 season took alot out of him and he retired. I thought he did a good job coming back to the Cowboys but decided not to continue after Jones went after Owens. Had he been there in 2007 instead of laid-back Wade Phillips, the Cowboys might have beaten the Giants in the playoffs but who knows? Phillips did a good coaching job that year but either the Giants were hotter going into the game or the Cowboys just had a letdown. Romo seemed to freeze up during the postseason anyway but could Parcells had been the winning difference ?
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Re: Parcells wanted to return to Giants in 1997

Post by 74_75_78_79_ »

Brian wolf wrote:Had Testaverde not gotten injured in 1999, I think he would have stayed with the Jets but that .500 season took alot out of him and he retired. I thought he did a good job coming back to the Cowboys but decided not to continue after Jones went after Owens. Had he been there in 2007 instead of laid-back Wade Phillips, the Cowboys might have beaten the Giants in the playoffs but who knows? Phillips did a good coaching job that year but either the Giants were hotter going into the game or the Cowboys just had a letdown. Romo seemed to freeze up during the postseason anyway but could Parcells had been the winning difference ?
As I’ve opined before, Wade was the ‘tonic’/change-in-gears that likely was the reason for the 13-3 regular season top-seed finish. He being laid-back as opposed to Tuna. However, whereas Bob Lemon in calming that ‘Bronx Zoo’ was able to take it all the way to another World Series title in ’78, Phillips’s tranquility may have very well done them in vs NYG. Perhaps Tuna should have returned for the playoffs as well as simply sticking around, a tad, to reap the bennies of all that he created in the years leading up.

Maybe the same if Jimmy stayed with Miami for ’00/’01. Or maybe Wannstedt, instead, needed to lead those Dolphins to those pair of 11-5s being that JJ may have been spent by then. Or, perhaps, a better HC than Dave making things better; maybe a Super Bowl. Fielder nothing special, but if Dilfer or Brad Johnson (or 2015 Peyton) could do it with enough pieces around them…

And the same goes for Garopollo, IMO. No, no more me calling him “the next Bob Griese”, but just good-enough (like Alex Smith who should have stayed the starter in San Fran; now Mahomes taking his place in KC? of course, by all means, understandable). There was no excuse for SF to lose to KC even with Jimmy G; and no excuse for they to at least not return to the Big Game this year with him either (okay, now we’re really getting off-subject).
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