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Jets trying to keep key free agents
Posted: Sunday January 23, 2000 02:19 PM
Sports Illustrated NFL writer Peter King chatted with CNNSI anchor Bob Lorenz about the goings-on around the league prior to the kickoff of the championship games Sunday: Bob Lorenz: Peter, it's been four years since the Cowboys played on championship Sunday. Their only game right now is looking for a new head coach. What's the latest? Peter King: Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was spurned this week when the Rams agreed to a long-term deal with offensive coordinator Mike Martz. So Jones is turning now to three men who he's thinking of hiring for his head coaching job. One is on his own staff, defensive coordinator Dave Campo, and that would retain the status quo of a lot of the current assistant coaches. But there are two other unlikely choices. Atlanta defensive coordinator Rich Brooks is under consideration and a quite unlikely one, Rams receivers coach Al Saunders, who failed in his only previous attempt as head coach in San Diego. Jones called Rams president John Shaw on Friday to talk to him about Saunders, and one of the things that intrigues Jones is that Saunders has been in a lot of offenses. And right now, he's the guy who has really been key in helping Martz get this offense going. So Jerry Jones, turned down for Mike Martz, may yet steal another Rams assistant. BL: The New York Jets have called a press conference for Monday not to announce that Bill Parcells is coming back, but to name linebackers coach Al Groh as their new head coach. What does this mean for the Jets? PK: Bill Parcells will stay on as director of operations through at least the NFL draft in April and perhaps beyond. But what's going to happen to the Jets and all their free agents? The team is trying hard to re-sign cornerback Marcus Coleman, who really came on at the end of the year. Coleman has verbally agreed to terms and will stay with the Jets. He would not have stayed if they had opened up their coaching search to all comers. So now that they have Al Groh in the fold they're able to keep Coleman. BL: And what about the long and winding road for Bill Belichick, the former momentary head coach of the Jets. Is he finally heading to the New England Patriots? PK: I think it depends on what happens this week. First of all, Bill Parcells and Woody Johnson of the Jets are solid on demanding a No. 1 draft choice from New England. The Patriots, in turn, to get Belichick only want give either a No.2 or No. 3 this year plus a No.2 next year. So I think what you are going to see happen is a lot of long-distance wrangling over the phone this week. And if it doesn't come to pass, then the Patriots within about 10 days are going to have to look elsewhere for a coach and it's going to be totally anyone's guess what they do there. BL: Bill Cowher of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dennis Green of the Minnesota Vikings are the only two coaches who have been with their current teams longer than Jeff Fisher has been with the Tennessee Titans. The Titans did not jump at he chance to give Fisher a contract extension. Do you think they're regretting that right now? PK: Well, they could have had him for $1 million or $1.2 million a year at midseason when things were going well for the Titans and Jeff Fisher was willing to talk turkey. But they didn't want to do it at the time. Now after the season, Fisher is probably going to be one of the highest paid coaches in the game if he chooses to sign an extension. He'll make at least $2 million a year off of his new deal. BL: Reports out of Minneapolis this week say that the Vikings can't afford to keep Jeff George, but both he and the team are denying those reports that say he is simply done in Minnesota. What's really happening? PK: Those reports are, very simply, the first volleys in negotiations between Jeff George and the Vikings. If George is willing to play for a cap-friendly contract of about $4 million or a little bit less per year, he'll be back with Vikings; if not, they're going to force him to go on the open market and then they would go with Randall Cunningham and rookie Daunte Culpepper.
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