Bill Parcells can’t quit football, but he’s been trying in some form or fashion for the last 25 years.
On a conference call Monday to discuss being a nominee for the Patriots Hall of Fame, Parcells said his coaching career was over.
“I’m done,” Parcells said, noting that this was the first time he’s had an extended period to himself and he’s enjoying being in good health.
“I think I’m going to leave the NFL to someone else right now,” he said, via Tom Curran of CSNNE.com.
Parcells said he was surprised and flattered to be considered by the Patriots. He’s probably surprised because he left the organization on such bad terms, seeking out a head coaching job in New York during his Super Bowl run in New England.
The Big Tuna now says he regrets how he handled part of that era.
“As you know, we had a couple domestic misunderstandings with ownership I do regret,” Parcells said. “Those things since have been resolved. I think retrospectively, I would have handled things substantially different than I did.”
Bill Belichick has said in print that he doesn’t think Parcells handled that situation appropriately. The pupil and mentor had a falling out when Belichick spurned Parcells in New York to take the Patriots job. The two men mended fences a while back and now have condos in the same complex in S. Florida.
“Put [Belichick’s] name right up with anybody who has ever done it,” Parcells said Monday via Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com.
We’re not sure we’d put Parcells quite as high purely as a coach. But as an organizational builder and towering personality, few can match Parcells’ influence over the last 30 years.