As soon as Dolphins vice president of everything Bill Parcells fired GM Randy Mueller on Monday, you knew it was only a matter of time before he did the same to head coach Cam Cameron. Owner Wayne Huizenga didn't hire Parcells to create a positive environment.
He hired him to run off anyone who reminded him of a pitiful 1-15 season, and that's exactly what Parcells has done. Even a final-hour plea from mutual friend Bob Knight couldn't save Cameron.
There are some personalities that can survive a 1-15 season (see Jimmy Johnson), but Cameron wasn't that guy. He carried himself with dignity as the losses mounted, but dignity will only get you so far in this game. As the season progressed, it became obvious that Cameron was losing the locker room.
Yes, I know Pro Bowl defensive end Jason Taylor presented him with the game ball after the Dolphins avoided football infamy with an overtime victory over the Ravens. But two weeks before that, Taylor indicated to me that he didn't have any type of relationship with his head coach.
I never thought a coach could make Dolphins fans yearn for the Saban years, but that's exactly what Cameron did. The one smart thing Saban did was make sure he had players such as Taylor on his side from the start.
For some reason, Cameron never went down that path. And the offensive guru status that he earned in San Diego never surfaced in Miami. Every writer who has the misfortune of covering this team on a weekly basis will tell you that Cameron would make it at least one or two baffling decisions per game.
The Dolphins were bad, but I think Parcells quickly determined they weren't bad enough to lose 15 games. I'm sure there was part of Huizenga that wanted to give Cameron at least one more year.
He dealt with a rash of injuries at key positions. But he turned over his franchise to a mercenary, and will have to live with the consequences.
Now, this team will be led by a large contingent of Parcells' Dallas gang. Cowboys assistant head coach Tony Sparano will probably replace Cameron, and his staff will likely include current assistants Todd Bowles and Paul Pasqualoni.
Jeff Ireland has already joined Parcells as the Dolphins' new GM, but he'll have to wait a little while on the coaches. I feel bad for Cameron because this is probably his last shot at being a head coach. He'll become an offensive coordinator somewhere, and I'm sure he'll do a commendable job.
But this is Parcells' franchise now, and no one should be surprised that he's putting his stamp on it.
