Blogger Playmaker reflects on his take of the tenure of Bill Parcells:
My father (an Eagles fan) asked me an interesting question yesterday, hearing my excitement about the hiring of Wade Phillips. “Do you think the team is better off now than with Parcells?†He was really just trying to break my stones, but I found it an interesting question, because my gut tells me “yesâ€Â.
If it has come to the point that the team is better off with Phillips than Parcells, does this mean that the Bill Parcells era in Dallas was a failure? I say “NO!†Let’s start off by reviewing Big Bill’s coaching performance. I think everyone on this blog would agree that the team has underachieved the last two years, given the depth of talent on the roster. “You are what you are†is what Parcells always told us … so we are an underachieving team. That is on the head coach. A pretty harsh indictment indeed, but consider not only did this team have seven Pro Bowlers in 2007, but with the very big exception of Greg Ellis, stayed completely healthy all year. “Parcells the coach†has not gotten it done in three of his final four years here, first leading a disappointing 6-10 squad, and then taking talented squads to the brink of contention in December, only to implode spectacularly, as they have done in each of the last two seasons.
Despite Parcells’ coaching failures, his legacy in Dallas should be a very positive one. Here is where we get into “Parcells the Team Builderâ€Â. When coach took over this sorry squad from Dave Campo, it was so entirely bereft of talent that you can count the remaining players on one hand. Let’s not kid ourselves here, this was a daunting task, taking this team back to respectability, let alone contention. The toughness and discipline that Parcells instilled in this team was one of the most important things that he did here, the other being the complete revamping of the roster. Eventually, Bill the coach was a victim of Bill the “GMâ€Âs success. He put together a talented, deep pool of players, but didn’t coach them into the “team†that was needed to get the job done. Make no mistake though, the roster is now stocked with talented, tough, disciplined, well-coached players. Well, except for Roy Williams, who doesn’t seem to care anymore, but that’s a story for another day.
Here’s to Wade Phillips taking the foundation that Parcells built, and taking it to the next level. The pieces are here. Maybe we are better off with Phillips now. But don’t ever forget how Bill Parcells rebuilt this team into the group that we are so excited about today.