Last week, I made a post voicing my concerns about Steve Ross and his "infatuation with celebrities and how it could affect Parcells and the Dolphins as a whole.
Lo and behold, Mike Berardino of Sun Sentinel writes this column voicing my exact concerns. I think that JTex and Tommy caught the same vibe. Please read and comment...
"First off, it was good to see Dolphins owner Stephen Ross speaking so optimistically in this recent story about the chances Bill Parcells stays on for at least another season after this one.
Not sure what Ross is basing this on other than gut instinct, but it was still good to see.
There is this general sense of dread out there that Parcells at some point could just decide to walk away from his latest rebuilding project, and not only collect the remainder of that $12 million on his four-year contract but (scariest part here) somehow find a way to take General Manager Jeff Ireland and head coach Tony Sparano with him.
Imagine the Trifecta on the open market as free agents after this season? How much would they be worth as a package deal, and perhaps with the scouts and top assistants as well?
OK, that probably remains nothing more than a Dolfan's worst nightmare, a connection of dots that is unlikely to say the least.
Asked recently if he was comfortable with the priorities of the new owner, Sparano said he was.
"Yes, I am comfortable that he has football first, without a doubt," Sparano said. "I know that Mr. Ross's priority is winning and that is the No. 1 priority here."
But then there's a moment like the one I witnessed Monday night before the Colts game, and you wonder.
Getting on the elevator to the press box a couple of hours before kickoff, I shared the ride with a handful of people, including two Dolphins assistants who will remain nameless to protect their identities. Apologetically, one of the elevator operators asked the Dolphins assistants to make sure they remembered not to use the same elevator to go back downstairs after the game.
Instead of having an elevator held just for them at the final gun -- as is the custom in every football environment I've ever experienced, college or pro -- they would need to walk outside onto the suite level, fight their way through a horde of mostly inebriated (and, as the game turned out, angry) fans and take one of four main elevators down to the ground floor.
"Sorry, guys," the stadium employee said, "but that's an order coming from pretty high up."
A few seconds of uncomfortable silence followed before one of the two assistants spoke.
"How high up?" the assistant asked.
"All the way up," came the reply. "Mr. Ross wants to keep this elevator clear."
With that, the assistant who asked the question turned wordlessly to the second assistant and frowned. Neither man said a word, but the look on the first assistant's face was priceless.
It was as if to say, "Can you believe this &*#$?"
Yes, I thought to myself, I can definitely believe it. On a night of celebrity orange carpets and J-Lo sightings and halftime Jimmy Buffett concerts with no Jimmy Buffett, why wouldn't the football people get pushed aside to make way for the New Dolphins circus?
Forget the security aspect of putting Dolphins assistants in Dolphins golf shirts on the same crowded elevators as the unwashed masses. How about some simple respect for the hard-working "football heads," as Sparano likes to call them, who make this whole three-hour display of violent chess possible week after week?
Nope. These New Dolphins would defy convention again.
Wouldn't want the limited partners (and their well-heeled pals) to have to wait for the elevator to come back upstairs.
Wonder what Parcells thought when he got that memo?
Anyway, J-Lo and Mark Anthony are expected to return for Sunday's game against the Bills, but we should be without Tiger Woods, the Williams sisters, the Estefans and Buffett. Here's hoping Ross and his handlers rethink that elevator pecking order and restore order so the "football heads" can do their jobs the way they're supposed to.
Efficiently, effectively and with minimal distractions."
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