James Orthwein hired Parcells. Thank you to both of them along with Willie McDonough who set up their initial meeting.
Tuna got his nickname right here, in 1980. He is what he is, and the Pats aren't the only team he bailed on. Bill Belichick will tell you, you gotta take the good with the bad.
Tuna doesn't bail, Kraft & Belichick
might not have sat together on the flight home from New Orleans. But Parcells definitely brought Belichick here first. Not Kraft.
And it wasn't only Belichick whom he took along to the Meadowlands: Charlie Weis, Romeo Crennel, Al Groh, Corwin Brown, Jerome Henderson and Otis My Man Smith all went down to Exit 16W in 1997.
Just like Belichick brought all the troops back up with him in 2000. The offseasons of 2000 and 2001 were spectacular; and are only matched by Chuck Fairbanks' in Pats history. Anyway, all we had to do then was get Bledsoe out of there [despite sniveling by Kraft] and just get somebody decent at QB. Of course, the kid BB decided to keep (carrying 4 QB's in '00) just happened to be the GOAT.
So I'm very thankful for Parcells' contributions here, and I totally understand his decision [but of course no way in hell he should be in the Pat's HOF before 2052, if then].
Bob Kraft, just like Billy Sullivan, has been a mixed bag, including some good, smart, brilliant decisions [buy & keep stadium lease, buy team, hire Belichick]. And, when some tremendous good fortune occurred to allow him to stay in Foxborough, he took advantage of the opportunity.
Let's also recognize Sullivan, who got us the franchise in the new AFL just in the nick of time, cobbled together a stadium despite zero support from the legislature, hired Fairbanks, kept Pat Patriot, and hired Dante Scarnecchia, who will be coaching our O-line as usual tomorrow in Pittsburgh.