TUNA STAYS PUT
Despite speculation that he might be looking for greener pastures and/or a rocking chair, Cowboys coach Bill Parcells is staying with the team in 2006. The Associated Press reports that the Cowboys have signed Parcells through 2007.
The AP characterizes the move as a "two-year extension," but it really isn't. It's a one-year extension of the four-year deal signed by Parcells when he was hired in 2003.
And the timing of the move probably was no coincidence. Based on rumors and reports we've heard and seen, Parcells likely was using talk of retirement to leverage owner Jerry Jones into sweetening the contract offer that had been on the table. A league source tells us that there was rampant speculation on Friday afternoon in league circles that Parcells would try to return to the Jets, given Herm Edwards' departure. The thinking wasn't that Parcells genuinely intended to leave, but that he wanted to squeeze Jones into upping the offer.
If so, it worked. On the same day that the Jets job opened up, Parcells opted to stay put.
We'll bet that he got whatever terms he was looking for, or pretty damn close to it.
