League Fines Policy $10,000

Cleveland Browns’ President Carmen Policy was fined $10,000 by NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue on Friday for violating the league’s tampering rules with some glib comments last week at a civic luncheon about Green Bay Packer Coach Mike Holmgren.

“I guess if the commissioner felt that it’s something we shouldn’t have said, I’m sorry we said it for that reason,” Policy said.

“I think anybody at the luncheon would know we were all just having fun. I guess I could have had $10,000 less fun and still have responded to a question.”

During a question-and-answer session with the audience, Policy, who was joined at the function by Cleveland Owner Al Lerner, was asked whether the Browns would be interested in Holmgren if the Packer coach were to leave Green Bay after the season.

After first responding by saying he was not permitted to talk specifically about Holmgren, Policy added, “Let’s just say if a head coach who’s out there, who has won a Super Bowl, who has been to another Super Bowl, who is coaching a team in contention for the playoffs this year, who is an offensive-minded coach, looking to perhaps move when the season’s over, were to be interested. . . .”

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Buffalo linebacker Marlo Perry was involved in a car accident that left one person dead at Cheektowaga, N.Y.

Police said Perry struck a car being driven by Valentine Stachowski of Buffalo after Stachowski failed to yield while making a left turn. A passenger in Stachowski’s car, 70-year-old Alfreda Dannheim of Cheektowaga, was ejected and killed.

Perry was treated at Buffalo’s Erie County Medical Center for cuts and bruises and released. Police said Perry was not at fault for the accident.

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The NFL determined that a phone call placed by New York Jet Coach Bill Parcells to New England Patriot quarterback Drew Bledsoe was “insubstantial” and would not merit a fine. Tagliabue contacted Parcells earlier this week to discuss his phone call to Bledsoe after the Jets’ 24-14 victory over New England on Oct. 19.

“The commissioner said he accepted the phone call was insubstantial,” said an NFL spokesperson. “Coach Parcells said he understood the commissioner’s concerns about phone calls to opposing players during the season and that there would be no further such calls by the Jets.”

It was reported that Parcells, who coached New England two years ago, learned from Bledsoe that Patriot receiver Terry Glenn would be sidelined for at least a few weeks with a hamstring injury and then informed Miami Coach Jimmy Johnson, who was facing the Patriots the following week.

Parcells and Johnson denied the reports.