TUNA IN TROUBLE?
POSTED 1:05 p.m. EST, March 3, 2008

We've got no real strong feelings one way or the other about Dolphins V.P. of football operations Bill Parcells. But we've noticed over the past few months that his apparent zeal to turn around a franchise that has figured out how to be consistently mediocre in the free-agency era (Dan Marino's presence masked it for much of the '90s) has caused the Tuna to create the appearance that he isn't respecting one or more of the rules that apply (in theory) to all 32 teams.

It's ironic, really, that while the team coached by the guy whom Parcells mentored and managed by the guy whom Parcells' daughter married is being relentlessly vilified for getting caught with a video camera in the cookie jar, the Tuna's tactics have been largely ignored.

First, there was the whole "I want Jeff Ireland to be my G.M. and if it means giving him 'final say' even if he doesn't really have it then let's do that" thing, which allowed Parcells to pilfer Ireland from the Cowboys even though no one believes that Ireland will so much as buy a new pair of bowling shoes without first consulting the boss. (To his credit, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones opted not to take a stand on this one, even though he could have.)

Second, there was the whole "I want Tony Sparano to be my coach and if it means giving him the job and telling him to shut up until the Cowboys lose in the playoffs then let's do that" thing, which allowed Parcells to begin rounding up Sparano's staff a couple of weeks before Sparano officially had the job.

More recently, the Fins obviously tampered with former 49ers guard Justin Smiley, and made no bones about it by finalizing his contract minutes after the official launch of free agency.

This time around, however, Parcells might have provided the league with enough ammunition to act. A league source recently pointed out to us this nugget from Peter King's "Ten Things I Think" in his MMQB: "I think you shouldn't make too much of this, but Bill Parcells, czar of the Dolphins, holder of the first pick in the draft, called Boston College coach Jeff Jagodzinski the other day and requested video of every one of quarterback Matt Ryan's 654 passes last fall. I still say Ryan at No. 3, to Atlanta, makes the most sense. "

But there's a problem with that. The source said that this practice is "very much against league rules, which forbid teams from contacting college teams for college video."

The source also pointed out that the teams get a strongly-worded memo each year regarding this practice.

If it's indeed a violation, the league clearly needs to step in. Stay tuned as to whether it does.