As expected, Wayne Huizenga has officially sold all but 5% of his stake in the Miami Dolphins to Stephen Ross. And with that move, Bill Parcells is officially on the clock. Parcells will now have 30 days to exercise a clause in his contract which would allow him to opt out of his deal with the Dolphins but still receive all of his remaining salary. It was a clause that was put in so that, in the event of a sale, Parcells could decide if he wanted to work with the new owner or not.
All indications are, though, that Parcells will remain with the Dolphins as the V.P. of Football Operations. If anything, Parcells might use the clause in his deal to finagle more money out of the new owner. But GM Jeff Ireland said today that he'd be "shocked" if Parcells decided to leave. And considering Parcells is down in Mobile at the Senior Bowl, it doesn't seem at all like Bill is planning on leaving.
Ross even mentioned Parcells in his first statement since becoming the new owner. Said Ross:
"In addition, I want to assure Dolphin fans that I share Wayne's same passion to win and will do everything I can to support Bill Parcells in his leadership of football operations. I also want to thank Jeff Ireland, Tony Sparano, and the entire football staff as they continue the mission they began a year ago to bring the Dolphins back to the Super Bowl."
Here's some advice for you, Mr. Ross. Stay out of the way of Bill Parcells and Jeff Ireland and all of the football decision makers. You stick to the business side of things and let these "football" guys make the football decisions. They know what's best. You don't.
Thank you.
**UPDATE**: In addition to the above statement, Ross added this during his conference call with the media. Speaking about Parcells, Ross said:
"He's the greatest football mind in America. I'm very happy to have him, needless to say. Everyone's expressed all the concerns, is he leaving or isn't he? He's staying and I'm fortunate to have him and I think Miami is fortunate to have him.''