Tagliabue Will Rule On Parcells

NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue will decide whether coach Bill Parcells, who took the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl, is free to leave them behind.

A conference call involving Tagliabue and both sides in the dispute over Parcells’ contract is set for today with a decision possible by Wednesday.

Parcells claims he can coach wherever he wants in 1997. The Patriots requested the conference call, and owner Robert Kraft says Parcells cannot coach or take a comparable position with any other NFL team next season.

Despite the Patriots’ successful season, ending with Sunday’s 35-21 Super Bowl loss to the Green Bay Packers, Kraft and Parcells have had a cool relationship. Speculation has focused on the New York Jets as Parcells’ next stop, but no other team can negotiate with him until a ruling by Tagliabue, for many years the NFL’s chief counsel.

A Tagliabue decision in the team’s favor would give Kraft leverage to demand compensation from any club that wants to hire Parcells.

New evidence against Smith

King County prosecutors may be able to use a new piece of evidence in their retrial of Seattle Seahawk Lamar Smith on a charge of vehicular assault.

The state Court of Appeals ruled that the judge in the first trial erroneously barred the introduction of evidence from a blood sample of Smith taken at a hospital.

Smith, a reserve tailback, is accused of causing a December 1994 wreck in suburban Kirkland that left Seahawks defensive tackle Mike Frier paralyzed below the waist.

Smith’s first trial ended Feb. 22 in a mistrial after jurors declared themselves deadlocked 11-1 for conviction. A date for a second trial hasn’t been set because the case has been tied up in appeals.

Murdoch wants L.A. team

Fox Network head Rupert Murdoch has expressed an interest in buying an NFL franchise for Los Angeles, “if no one else steps forward.”

“We would love to see an NFC franchise in that market, not only for the NFL but for our owned and operated station there,” Murdoch said.

Around the league

Seven-time Pro Bowl offensive tackle Gary Zimmerman, plagued by shoulder injuries the last two seasons, apparently has decided to retire from the Denver Broncos. … Sources close to the Saints say the team will announce the hiring of Mike Ditka as head coach as early as today… . Joe Pascale was hired as the San Diego Chargers’ defensive coordinator.