The New Orleans Saints tabbed offensive line coach Aaron Kromerto be the interim head coach during previous interim head coach Joe Vitt's six-game suspension to the start the 2012 regular season.
That wasn't always going to be the plan, however, as Sean Payton attempted to lure Bill Parcells, Payton's mentor, out of retirement to coach the Saints this season.
Obviously, Parcells declined to return to an NFL sideline for the first time since 2006 and will remain in his role as an analyst for ESPN. During his "NFL Preview" show on ESPN on Tuesday, Parcells shed some light on why he did not accept the offer to coach a Super Bowl-caliber team.
"I've done this job for a long time," Parcells said, via Nate Davis of the USA Today. "And it takes a tremendous amount of energy, particularly a person my age, to do these things.
"And at the end of the thought process and the interim time that I had to think about it, I just didn't think I was the guy that really wanted to do it. And I really don't think I was the best guy for the Saints as well."
Though they would rather have Payton and Vitt in their current roles, the Saints were smart to go with Kromer for the interim position. This way, coordinators Pete Carmichael and Steve Spagnuolo can focus on their respective sides of the football and Kromer, who has garnered interest as a head coaching candidate, will gain some valuable experience he can bring into future interviews.
Follow Brian McIntyre on Twitter _@brianmcintyre_.
