Parcells Still on His Watch With the Jets

Bill Parcells is certain he doesn’t want to coach anymore. He can’t be sure he’ll be able to hold to that vow.

In the wake of the resignation of his hand-chosen assistant, Bill Belichick, only 24 hours after Parcells stepped down as coach of the New York Jets, nothing is a sure thing with the team.

It is about to be sold, perhaps in the next few days, and Parcells will wait until he speaks to the winning bidder before making any commitments.

“This is my watch,” Parcells said in a conference call Thursday. “I have a responsibility to the organization and I’m in charge of finding a new coach now. I will not abandon the franchise.”

Meanwhile, an attorney for Belichick filed a grievance with the NFL over his contract with the Jets, which has three more years. Jet President Steve Gutman has said he wasn’t prepared to allow Belichick out of the contract.

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Coaching changes are also in the works in New Orleans, where Mike Ditka was fired this week.

Names being tossed around as possible successors include former Kansas City coach Marty Schottenheimer; Dom Capers, a former assistant at New Orleans and now defensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars; and even Belichick.

Team owner Tom Benson said in a statement that he intended to “begin the same process that we used in 1986, a process that produced Jim Finks as president and general manager.”

Finks, in turn, hired then little-known Jim Mora, who produced the only winning seasons in franchise history.

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At Pittsburgh, Steeler President Dan Rooney and Coach Bill Cowher will meet early next week to plot the team’s future--and, perhaps, Cowher’s as well.

The two meet after each season, but this session has become far more urgent and, potentially, far more volatile because of the Steelers’ 6-10 record and Cowher’s vow to keep his staff intact.

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Linebacker Cornelius Bennett, the leading tackler for the Indianapolis Colts, was optimistic that he could overcome a torn ligament in his left knee and return for the playoffs.

Bennett, who started all 16 games, tore his medial collateral ligament and also injured his posterior cruciate ligament when he was blocked by Buffalo’s Antowain Smith on the Bills’ opening offensive play of Sunday’s game.

The Colts have a first-round bye in the playoffs and will play Seattle, Buffalo or Tennessee in the RCA Dome on Jan. 16.

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The Washington Redskins saw more encouraging signs Thursday from injured running back Stephen Davis, and Coach Norv Turner said he expects the NFC rushing leader to start Saturday’s first-round playoff game against the Detroit Lions at FedEx Field.

But Davis did favor his sprained left ankle on the practice field for a second consecutive day.

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St. Louis Ram Coach Dick Vermeil said he’ll limit player interview sessions to help them retain their focus for the playoffs.

“We’re not going to be paranoid about it, believe me,” Vermeil said, “but this is a young group of kids, and there are certain players that the media wants to line up and talk to them, and it just isn’t going to happen.”

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A month ago, Andre Reed said the best thing for him would be to keep quiet about his lack of playing time with the Buffalo Bills. He has changed his mind.

The 15-year veteran of four Super Bowls let his feelings boil over again this week, this time on his Internet site. His feelings came only two days after he had moved into second place on the NFL list of career receptions with 945, behind only Jerry Rice.

“It wasn’t just a happy moment for me, but also frustration,” Reed wrote. “The five balls that I did catch weren’t even routes, and that just makes me look bad, like they have to give me charity throws. They’ve just been throwing me bones to keep me happy, but I’m not happy at all. . . .

“It’ll be a chip on my shoulder for a long time. I think I can start fresh somewhere else and offer a team something next year and hopefully go out the way I want.”

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Quarterback Craig Whelihan, who spent four seasons with the San Diego Chargers before being released in September, signed a three-year deal with the Oakland Raiders. . . . San Francisco defensive tackle Bryant Young, who overcame a serious leg injury, was selected by the Associated Press as the NFL’s comeback player of the year, beating out Washington quarterback Brad Johnson. . . . The NFL’s per-game paid attendance rose 2.1% to 65,349 this season, and the total passed 16 million for the first time.