Holmgren only coaching one more year in Seattle

Trouble brewing in Seattle???

by txramsfan

From foxsports.com

Seattle owner Paul Allen, the billionaire who rescued the Seahawks in his hometown, continues to wait for head coach Mike Holmgren to sign a three-year extension that was offered at Super Bowl time.

Holmgren is thinking about being a lame-duck coach this season, his final one contractually in Seattle. He remains upset with GM Tim Ruskell over the loss of All-Pro guard Steve Hutchinson. Ruskell promised Holmgren that he would "franchise" Hutchinson and prevent him from leaving. Instead, the Seahawks placed a transition tag on Hutchinson and lost him to the mad-spending Minnesota Vikings.

The key in this entire issue is whether or not Holmgren can get over being let down by Ruskell and his contract negotiator, Mike Reinfeldt, over the loss of Hutchinson.

Whether or not Holmgren wants to be a GM again doesn't shock me, but walking away from a Seattle team that is capable of returning to another Super Bowl is rather ubelievable, even to his long-time assistant coaches. Then, again, Holmgren walked from the Packers when he could have won and won with Brett Favre until he retired.
- Channel: NFL TALK
-04-19-2006, 07:59 AM
Seahawks are happening in Seattle

by RamDez

Seahawks are happening in Seattle
By Lori Shontz

Of the Post-Dispatch
10/09/2004
Coach Mike Holmgren (right) has had a steady rebuilding plan, which has ended up paying dividends for QB Matt Hasselbeck (8).
(Otto Greule Jr./Getty Images)

It wasn't that long ago that on the entertaining Underground Seattle tours, which take tourists under the city to see the old city, now buried by a series of natural disasters, that guides used the city's professional football team as a punchline.

Oh, Seattle's had it's share of disasters Earthquakes, fires . . . Seahawks.

Quarterback Matt Hasselbeck, who arrived in town for the 2001 season, had no idea such jokes were being told. "That would hurt my feelings," he said. He meant it. The one-liner didn't make him laugh.

The fact is, Seahawks jokes wouldn't get much of a laugh anymore.

The Seahawks, who went to the playoffs as a wild card team last season, are returning five Pro Bowl players: Hasselbeck, running back Shaun Alexander, offensive tackle Walter Jones, offensive guard Steve Hutchinson and special teams star Alex Bannister. Their defense, anchored by former Rams lineman Grant Wistrom, is ranked No. 1 in the NFL.

Although the Rams are the defending NFC West champions, the Seahawks are considered the team to beat, and they are also wearing the label "legitimate Super Bowl contender."

All this from a team whose road record over the years has been another surefire laugh line, a team that had never quite captured the heart or mind of its city. Rams defensive end Bryce Fisher, who grew up in Seattle, is typical. He and his friends grew up rooting for the Raiders because the Seahawks were so bad.

But for Sunday's game against the Rams at Quest Field, coach Mike Holmgren is expecting that the sold-out stadium full of screaming fans will be one of his team's advantages.

"It's kind of like when it first happened in St. Louis," Wistrom said. "How fired up everybody was, how new it was to everybody. And the energy that you can feel. It's very exciting to be a part of something like that again, where everyone's appreciated and fans are fired up about it. All everybody wants to talk about is the 'Hawks right now."

In this, his sixth season in Seattle after 13 successful seasons at Green Bay, Holmgren has finally put the Seahawks where he always believed they could be.

"If the organization is willing to stay with you - if they believe in you, first of all . . . and they give you enough time, you should be able to improve," Holmgren said. "And they have done that with us. Now we have pretty good depth, our money situation's in pretty good shape capwise. Hopefully we can keep this thing going and get into the playoffs again."
...
- Channel: RAMS NATION TALK
-10-10-2004, 02:17 AM
Holmgren staying put

by Nick

Holmgren staying put
Seahawks sources end speculation about coach leaving for ***** job
By CLARE FARNSWORTH
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

KIRKLAND -- When Mike Holmgren holds his season-ending news conference today, the Seahawks coach will discuss the things that went wrong in 2004 and his plans for how to get it right in 2005.

Things remain status quo despite media speculation in Seattle and San Francisco that Holmgren could be fired or decide to leave Seattle after six seasons.

A season that began with high expectations might have veered off course, but sources yesterday said club president Bob Whitsitt and Holmgren have decided to stay the course.

That was apparent at the team's headquarters yesterday, one day after the players cleared out their lockers and two days removed from their loss to the St. Louis Rams in the first round of the playoffs.

Holmgren met with Whitsitt yesterday, as well as his coaching staff. The only sure change there is not surprising, as special teams coach Mark Michaels will not be retained after his units ranked among the worst in the league in several key categories.

Whitsitt was not available, and Holmgren declined to discuss the situation as he left the building last night.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow," he said.

So that's good news for the coach?

"Hope so," he said with a smile.

The conjecture over Holmgren's status with the Seahawks grew last week when the San Francisco ***** fired Dennis Erickson, the coach who was terminated by the Seahawks in 1999 to open the way for Holmgren to be hired.

Holmgren is from San Francisco and was an assistant coach with the ***** from 1986-91, when the franchise won two Super Bowls. He has two years remaining on his contract with the Seahawks, and the ***** have not requested permission to speak with Holmgren about their vacancy.

Holmgren has said he would like to finish his career with the Seahawks, and that he and his wife, Kathy, have settled into an enjoyable lifestyle here.

He also believes the Seahawks are close to becoming a playoff-winning team, despite the stumbles that prevented this season from being all that it could have been.

"We took one more step this year over last year, believe it or not, when we won the division," Holmgren said after Saturday's game at Qwest Field, the last time he spoke publicly. "That was a goal. One of these years we're going to win a playoff game and take the next step.

"(Saturday) was a tough one, but it will happen if we can keep the team together."

With his situation settled, Holmgren, Whitsitt and general manager Bob Ferguson can channel their efforts into re-signing at least some, if not most, of the 16 players scheduled to become...
- Channel: NFL TALK
-01-11-2005, 06:48 AM
What's wrong with the Seahawks?

by Nick

What's wrong with the Seahawks?
By TIM KORTE, AP Sports Writer
November 15, 2004

KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) -- Last summer, the Seattle Seahawks were a trendy pick to reach the Super Bowl.

As they keep reminding themselves, that goal remains attainable. Yet one day after their second loss to NFC West rival St. Louis, everyone from coach Mike Holmgren down was asking the same question.

What's wrong with the Seahawks?

``Some of the things that happened yesterday, I'm struggling for answers,'' Holmgren said Monday. ``And I don't like that feeling.''

This was one of Seattle's most celebrated games so far, a rematch with the Rams who struck for 23 unanswered points in the final eight minutes on Oct. 10, when St. Louis won 33-27 in overtime.

This time, the Seahawks (5-4) allowed 17 quick points. Seattle's offense couldn't keep up, nor could it reach the end zone. Matt Hasselbeck was 15-of-36 for 172 yards with an interception, and was plagued by poor decisions and drops.

``I expect us to be better than that,'' Holmgren said. ``We missed. We just didn't execute. We didn't catch it very well. We didn't throw it very well, as well as I think we can.''

Shaun Alexander gained 176 yards rushing to put him over the 1,000-yard mark in the ninth game, but he had a key fumble after a nice 35-yard run in the fourth quarter when Seattle was trying to close a 20-12 margin.

Nobody knows what's wrong.

``If I knew, I would tell you,'' Alexander said. ``Obviously, we haven't figured it out. We all have different ideas of what would help. As a team, we're not doing it. We'll eventually figure it out and go from there.''

Holmgren said repeatedly back at training camp that a deep postseason run was possible, provided Seattle's best players all performed well throughout the season.

So far, that hasn't happened.

A Seattle defense that stormed its first three opponents has been up-and-down since. Marc Bulger made six straight completions on the Rams' opening drive Sunday, and he was 11-of-13 with a 14-0 lead after seven minutes.

``We made it too easy,'' Holmgren said.

Hasselbeck -- a Pro Bowler last season -- has had some solid games, mixed with struggles that leave Holmgren scratching his head.

``We're not far from it really exploding and being good,'' Hasselbeck insisted. ``Just like the week before when there were a lot of good plays, it's just 6 inches and it's a good play. That's kind of where we're at.''

Great, but they've been saying that for weeks now. Hasselbeck believes the Seahawks ``are on the other side of that fine line,'' and he maintains there's optimism flowing through the locker room.

Seattle, though, is teetering -- poised to go one way or the other.

...
- Channel: NFL TALK
-11-16-2004, 08:37 AM
seahawks head coach mora is fired, pete carroll hired?

by tdog08

just heard it from the nfc west blogger from espn.
- Channel: NFL TALK
-01-08-2010, 11:35 AM

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Holmgren only coaching one more year in Seattle

Holmgren only coaching one more year in Seattle

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