July 31, 2010; Davie, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins executive vice president of football operations Bill Parcells during training camp at the Dolphins training facility. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

Now it seems the ol’ Tuna may be headed back to the sidelines to try and knock some of the tarnish off the past decade. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reports that suspended head coach Sean Payton has approached his mentor, Parcells, about coaching in his absence next season.

While seeking the counsel of his former boss and mentor, Bill Parcells, New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton has broached the idea of Parcells becoming the interim head coach during Payton’s suspension for the 2012 season, according to several league sources.

While none of this has been run up the ladder, it doesn’t shock me Parcells would be amenable to this. After failing in Dallas and Miami, and with the stench of Tuna still burning in Dolphins HQ down in Davie, Parcells didn’t exactly leave the NFL on a high note.

That was reflected when he wasn’t elected to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot, a distinction that Parcells surely coveted.

This would give the Tuna a chance to try and put a nice exclamation at the end of his career. Truth be told Parcells hasn’t won anything since the 80′s, hasn’t won consistently since the 90′s and even despite the ESPN hype machine repping him, his reputation isn’t what it once was.

But a Super Bowl run with a loaded Saints team?

The Tuna always did dream big. That would be too good to be true, if he can bring stability to a franchise that has been rocked by Bountygate and win, suddenly his legacy looks a little better. Suddenly that second run at Hall of Fame eligibility has a much better first ballot shot.

The Tuna always was a glory hound. It’s why he quits on teams before the failure can be reflected on him. It’s why he left the Jets, it’s why he left Dallas when he lost faith in Tony Romo, and it’s why he bailed in Miami before the bottom fell out.

So if this ridiculous idea actually does play out and he sits in front of the media in New Orleans for the first time, don’t buy the baloney about it not being about him.

It’s always about the Tuna.

The recent allegations and punishments/fines meted out in the New Orleans Saints bounty case are revelatory. Never before have punishments like that been levied out to a franchise. Spygate pales in comparison. Interestingly Spygate, which has been mentioned more than once as people try to compare it vis-à-vis to this case, isn’t even in the same ballpark on any level. I’m not going to get high and mighty and suggest that these things don’t happen or haven’t happened before, quite obviously that’s not so, but it was arrogance and egregiousness (a term Roger Goodell mentioned more than once) that doomed the Saints here.

Feb 6, 2012; Indianapolis, IN, USA; NFL commissioner Roger Goodell during the Super Bowl most valuable player and winning head coach press conference at the Super Bowl XLVI media center at the J.W. Marriott. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-US PRESSWIRE

As a Bucs fan I have been subjected to Sean Payton’s smug countenance more than a typical fan should ever have to be. As we recall with the benefit of hindsight now karma seemed to begin embracing the Saints during their home game at RJS last year. As most will recollect, Payton had his knee destroyed on the sideline because he neglected to get out of the way of some players as they tumbled to the ground. As it turns out that was far less painful than the mega bucks he will miss out on this year due to his suspension.

The NFL asked the Saints about bounties. And then they asked them again. We know what the Saints said, “not us”. Then the NFL compiled evidence. And more evidence. And eventually reportedly around 40,000 pages of evidence not counting all of the secret eyewitness testimony. It was the lying and arrogance that crucified the Saints. Now, after the fact, Gregg Williams is contrite. He’s sorry. Sean Payton, patronizing till the end can’t believe he’s, gulp, actually being punished. Smugness be damned.

Aside from the suspension of Saints coaches and the 8 game suspension of Mickey Loomis, the other penalties are in the form of cash and draft picks. Saints ownership and management have many things to sort through. With Drew Brees flapping in the wind due to their neglect in not signing him to a long term deal already, that is probably priority one. But the NFL has informed the Saints that player punishment will follow. This almost certainly means Jonathan Vilma and some of his friends.

The Saints, who were already looking at FA linebackers would then be in great need. They flirted with Curtis Lofton but his price was too high. Now they’ll have to commit dollars to Brees. And they’re left without their 2nd round pick this year to boot. More importantly, how good does New Orleans look to a FA of any position now? Sure, throw dollars around and someone will come, but Brees is now immediately in a position of basically creating his own asking price. And if he threatens to sit out, his trump card, the Saints would be doomed.

So how does this change the complexion of the NFC South? Greatly I would say. Pundits will immediately elevate the Atlanta Falcons as the defacto ‘best team in the NFC South’ with the Saints second, assuming they can sign Brees and other players of need. If they can’t, they will be without the astute play calling and daring of Payton as well as the majestic and heady play of Brees. This could spell an Indianapolis Colts type disaster. It would also immediately elevate both the Bucs and Panthers into legitimate NFC South title contention. This would have seemed inconceivable even just a few days ago.

There’s an axiom that in the NFL everyone gets what they deserve. The Saints got what they deserved. And the rest of the team in the NFC South will ultimately benefit.

-Steven Levy

Follow @ThePewterPlank

Jan 14, 2012; San Francisco, CA, USA; New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton watches from the sideline during the fourth quarter of the 2011 NFC divisional playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park. The 49ers defeated the Saints 36-32. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-US PRESSWIRE

That’s frankly a huge penalty, one that could effectively sink the Saints if not addressed properly. There is some ambiguity as to when Loomis begins his suspension. Drew Brees is up for a contract and if Loomis cannot operate the team until midway through the season that futher complicates things. Either way the Saints are in trouble this upcoming season.

This whole saga began when the NFL started investigating claims that the Saints were paying out bounties for devastating hits during the 2009 season. A pot of as high as 50,000 dollars was collected and doled out for hits that knocked players out of games and fired up the defense.

Whether or not that’s just football or an over the line is debatable, but clearly based on the penalties handed down today, the NFL feels it was the latter.