Where are you getting this from? Unless I have a case of amnesia, he had an open checkbook for Parcells to say. You can't blame Woody for the fact that the Tuna wanted to retire for the 100th time. The only coach/GM that I recall complaining about money was Herm. I don't think anyone outside of junc would think that Herm did anything to deserve a raise.
As coach and GM. I think it's a mistake to have one person perform both roles because that leads to sillyness of the Ricky Williams sort. Ditka was a mess when he tried to perform both roles with the Saints and it showed. Parcells made a mess of the Jets finances when he came in and did both roles also, due to his need to win right now at any cost and the fact that he had the authority to do whatever he wanted to do to get talent on the field. There's a natural tension that should exist between the front office and the coaching staff that is missing in a one guy/two hats scenario. Jimmy Johnson could put together a better organization than the Jets have right now with his eyes closed. He absolutely was available to be hired as a GM. By NFL custom any promotion allows extra-contractual movement, although frequently the team holding the current rights negotiates for or is awarded additional compensation. Bill Parcells could have come to the Jets absolutely free despite his existing Patriots contract in 1997. The Jets wound up paying compensation in the form of a 1st round pick because they wanted Parcells on the sidelines also. Nobody knows what kind of GM Marty Schottenheimer would be but I'll guarantee you he'd be better than Tannenbaum. Similarly there's no way to tell how his personal experiences in the playoffs would affect a team when he was not on the sidelines in the final 5 minutes of the game. I'll pretty much guarantee he would not be on the phone yammering in his coaches ear at that point though. Definitely chancier than hiring an NFL person who understands the NFL game. A lot less chancy than hiring an accountant who does not. Bill Parcells has only been GM of one team: the NY Jets team that went 4-28 before he showed up and 21-11 and to the AFC Championship game in the two years after. I'd say that qualifies him to be looked upon at least kindly as a GM at this point. I'd say that if the Jets had hired him as GM only and he'd hired Bill Belichik as head coach we might have had a very happy event sometime in the interim. Not throwing money at a big name guarantees that one won't come here. Given the disaster we're watching I can fault Woody for handing the car keys to people not ready to drive.
Our biggest problem is that our offensive and especially defensive line lacks size. Our D-line was getting pushed 3 yards back on almost every play. The o-line can't open up any holes. This has been an inherent theme all year. Nothing new.
