Haslett presides over Rams' fresh start
ST. LOUIS -- On his first full day as St. Louis Rams coach, Jim Haslett was impressed by the energy level in practice.
What he experienced was a team eager to distance itself from a sorry 0-4 start that cost Scott Linehan his job, and doing its best to impress the new boss. Reality can wait.
"Things have changed around here, so I would say that it was different," linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa said. "In some good ways."
The bye week is a welcome break for a team worn down from grinding failure after failure. Everyone, coaches included, got four days off before returning to work on Monday.
"In a way, it's a good time for everyone," defensive end Leonard Little said. "To just get away and get a fresh start and breathe some fresh air."
No doubt it's also the honeymoon period for Haslett, the former defensive coordinator whose choice has been widely lauded largely for his fiery nature. St. Louis' poor showing thus far on defense has been minimized by media willing to wait and see what happens when he's in charge.
The 52-year-old Haslett realizes the heavy lifting will come soon enough, and the Rams remain in danger of getting slapped around a lot more. The first three games for the new coach are against the Redskins, Cowboys and Patriots, teams with a combined 8-3 record.
The former NFL linebacker is determined that, at the least, Rams players will approach those games not feeling like underdogs. Perhaps one of his biggest tests is propping up their collective sagging egos.
The positive vibe briefly vanished during the opening practice when Jason Craft intercepted Trent Green and the offense trudged away, shoulders sagging. Haslett lit into players, telling them to shake it off, that mistakes are going to happen and that it's what you do about it that counts.
"We haven't responded well enough to adversity," linebacker Chris Draft said. "If something bad happens, we have to be able to come back, get the momentum back in our favor."
The Saints were bitter NFC West rivals of the Rams when the fiery Haslett was New Orleans coach, and Haslett was 4-2 against Mike Martz. The Saints beat them two of three in 2000, including the first playoff win in franchise history to knock off St. Louis in a year between Super Bowl trips for the Rams.
"They thought they could come up here and physically beat the Rams up every year," Haslett said. "Whether they could or couldn't, that's the way they played.
"We'll try to get my personality into them as fast as we can, if that's the way you want to look at it. I do like guys who are tough and hard-nosed and love to play the game."
That was part of the message in Haslett's first team meeting on Tuesday, a day after the Rams elevated him to head coach with a shot to last well beyond the final 12 games. He won't tolerate sagging.
"I couldn't think of a better guy to step in," rookie defensive end Chris Long said. "Haz brings energy, a realistic attitude, a guy who's going to shoot you straight, and a guy we can win with and guys will play for."
Beyond the mental, Haslett wants to make sure there's nothing physical about their second-half problems. Players ran sprints after practice both days during the bye week, and Haslett said they'll run on Mondays and Wednesdays the rest of the season.
"There's a reason why we haven't played very well in the fourth quarter," Haslett said. "I don't know what it is, but I'm not going to let conditioning be a part of it."
Haslett already has made changes on defense to prop up a disappointing unit ranked 31st out of 32 teams. In last week's 31-14 loss to the Bills, he reduced 34-year-old La' Roi Glover to part-time status in favor of second-year player Clifton Ryan.
Leonard Little, the Rams' top pass rusher, returned as a reserve after missing two games with a hamstring injury and had two of the team's four sacks of Bills quarterback Trent Edwards in the first half. Draft, who lost a starting spot after being hampered by a back injury, got his job back because the team prized his leadership.
"We made some changes, but we weren't trying to punish anybody," Haslett said. "Glove's getting a little bit older and we wanted to kind of limit his reps, and we wanted to get the young guys out there.
"Obviously it was good to have Leonard back, but those guys were flying around."
Tinoisamoa said the Rams are back to leaning on their speed on defense after straying earlier in the year.
"We've got to use that as an asset," he said. "This is our identity and it's a good feeling. We've got to swarm."
On offense, Haslett restored the status quo by returning quarterback Marc Bulger as starter. Bulger, benched after totaling two touchdown passes in the first three games, is eager to direct the type of go-for-broke offense the Rams unveiled against Buffalo.
New offensive coordinator Al Saunders' scheme is based on rhythm and timing. Ideally, it also is designed to protect the quarterback.
"But it limits other things," Bulger said. "We have to lay it on the table now. It's not about protecting one guy, you have to throw it out the window and go for it."
Players also realize they're not out of it, given every team in the NFC West has at least two losses.
"Certainly, it didn't start out the way we wanted," Bulger said. "But guys haven't quit, and we honestly still think we do have a chance in the division. Believe it or not."
That's the kind of thing Haslett likes to hear.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Titans make starting change at middle linebacker
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Ryan Fowler was caught by surprise when he learned Stephen Tulloch was replacing him as the Tennessee Titans' starting middle linebacker.
"It definitely came as a shock to me. It went from, `There is no competition,' and then skipped the competition part altogether and went to a replacement without any warning," Fowler said Thursday. "I understand the coaches will do what they need to do to win, and they probably have the best interests of the team at hand.
"I'm not mad about the change. I'm a little disappointed in the way that it took place without any warnings."
The Titans (3-0) signed the 6-foot-3 Fowler away from Dallas as a restricted free agent in March 2007, and he beat out the speedy Tulloch for the job. Fowler started 14 games last season and the first three this year.
The 5-11 Tulloch was Tennessee's fourth-round draft choice in 2006 off of a great North Carolina State defense that also featured Mario Williams. He started the final two games last year when Fowler hurt a shoulder.
Tulloch also started three preseason games at outside linebacker, playing so well he had some teammates thinking he should be starting.
Told that Tulloch would be starting, Fowler said there wasn't much discussion and he believes the move is indefinite.
The move is a bit surprising because Tennessee currently leads the NFL in fewest points allowed through three games with 29. The Titans also rank third in yards allowed.
Fowler said he had refocused on being a physical player after experimenting with some finesse moves during the preseason. He had been told his performance against Cincinnati on Sept. 14, in which he had seven tackles with two for a loss, was his best yet with Tennessee.
"I hadn't been approached or talked to or showed any concern by any of the coaches since the season started, and by all accounts, I had been getting nothing but positive feedback from coaches and scouts alike," Fowler said.
Tulloch, whose locker is beside Fowler's, was lifting weights and not available to reporters Thursday after practice. Coach Jeff Fisher would only say that they like the matchup against Minnesota (1-2) and Adrian Peterson with Tulloch.
Fowler said it couldn't be based on production because he has 18 tackles and is tied with Keith Bulluck for the lead among linebackers. But he said he'll try to lose a few pounds to improve his speed.
"I was focusing on being the hammer they wanted me to be," Fowler said. "I thought I was on the right track. I guess there was some communication lost somewhere in there. It's probably my fault for not paying close enough attention."
Bulluck called it a tough situation for coaches, Fowler and Tulloch. Bulluck had been counseling Tulloch to have patience, comparing Tulloch's situation to his own as a first-round draft pick in 2000 who didn't take over as the starter until the final game of the 2001 season.
"They didn't make a change and our defense wasn't playing as well as we are playing. It's a coach's decision. It shouldn't change anything the other 10 of us do to prepare or anyone else on this defense," Bulluck said.
Defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch said Tulloch had a great training camp and preseason.
"I know it's hard to wait your turn and be patient, but he did. He kept his head on straight, and that's what happens in this league," Vanden Bosch said. "You'll get your opportunity if you keep working hard, and he's got his opportunity now."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Cardinals will stick around after game vs Redskins
LANDOVER, Md. -- Clinton Portis received a request this week from his old University of Miami buddy Edgerrin James, running back for the soon-to-be Washington Cardinals.
"I got a text from him telling me he needs a car," Portis said, "because he's going to be out here for a whole week. So I'm trying to find, like, an old '54 with no air conditioning -- no nothing -- to put him in, so he can suffer."
You heard right. The Arizona Cardinals, trying to keep the momentum from a 2-0 start and fed up with their poor record in the eastern time zone, are taking an old-fashioned road trip. They visit the Redskins on Sunday, then will make the nation's capital their home while preparing for their game the following weekend at the Meadowlands against the New York Jets.
"It's well noted whenever you travel across the country, and you change time zones, that it has an effect on your body," coach Ken Whisenhunt said. "And this is a physical game. We're trying to be a better road team, and last year we weren't that good, and hopefully this is just something that will give us a better chance."
The facts support Whisenhunt. The NFL's five westernmost teams -- Seattle, San Francisco, Oakland, San Diego and Arizona -- went 3-15 in the east last year. The Cardinals are a staggering 2-14 in cross-country road trips since 2003.
Redskins coach Jim Zorn knows the dilemma well, having spent most of his career in Seattle as a player and an assistant on Mike Holmgren's staff. A 1 p.m. start in the east translates to 10 a.m. for the body clock of someone arriving from the west coast.
Four of Seattle's six regular-season losses last year came at Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Carolina and Atlanta. Zorn thinks the time lag might have played a factor when Holmgren's Seahawks lost at Buffalo in Week 1 this season.
"There were times when we would come out on a Friday and we'd lose," Zorn said, "so he said we're going to come out on a Saturday and we'd lose. And then we'd come out on a Friday and we'd win, and we'd come out on a Saturday and we'd win. So you realize there's no magic formula."
Holmgren never brought the team east for a full week, although other coaches have done it on rare occasions. For one thing, it requires a ton of logistics planning. The Cardinals flew to Washington on Friday, but they asked their players to put their extra packing on a truck that was also loaded with equipment and driven across the country ahead of time.
"Honestly, I don't really care for it too much," Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner said. "Having played in this league as long as I have, and done a lot of road trips, I kind of like just coming home and seeing my family and having a normal routine and then going back to play.
"But at the same time I respect Coach's decision to try to change things up given that we haven't been a good road team."
By the time Warner sees his family again, the NFL will have a better idea whether the Cardinals are for real. They played well in victories over San Francisco and Miami, but no one is mistaking either of two those teams for a Super Bowl contender. A win over the Redskins (1-1) will give the franchise its first 3-0 start since 1974, so Whisenhunt understands if fans need more evidence this team might snag a rare playoff berth.
"I don't blame 'em," Whisenhunt said. "I think that we have to prove that we're a good team, and this game will certainly be a good measuring stick for us. There is a lot of excitement because it hasn't happened that often in the past years. There is a little bit of buzz in the town."
As for the Redskins (1-1), they aren't buying into the fact their home-field advantage is a bigger advantage than usual because the other team has come from afar. One of Arizona's three cross-country losses last year was a mistake-filled 21-19 defeat at Washington in which the Cardinals failed to convert a 2-point conversion in the final 30 seconds, then recovered an onside kick and missed a field goal that would have won the game.
"They had us beat," defensive coordinator Greg Blache said. "We were dead, and they gave us mouth-to-mouth. They made some mistakes at the end to bring us back to life. Realistically, they beat our butts."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Huard again comes to Kansas City's rescue
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Like the cavalry, Damon Huard always arrives just in the nick of time.
The always-agreeable career backup will once again put down his clipboard and pick up his helmet Sunday when Kansas City hosts Oakland. With Brodie Croyle sidelined by a shoulder injury, Huard will be coming in for an injured Chiefs quarterback for the third time in three years.
He'll do so after getting almost no practice snaps throughout spring and summer drills. Huard played so sparingly in the preseason, many people assumed the 12-year veteran had dropped to third-string behind Tyler Thigpen amid the youth-oriented rebuilding movement that's turned the Chiefs into the youngest team in the league.
But when Croyle went down against New England last week, it was Huard who came off the bench and came within a whisker of pulling out a win. And it'll be Huard who makes the start against the Raiders.
"You try to be a pro," he said. "Your opportunity comes to play, you try to make the most of it."
No one doubts whether he'll be ready because in a reliable 12-year career that's seen him back up Dan Marino in Miami and Tom Brady in New England, he's always been ready.
"He's a pro," coach Herm Edwards said. "That's what's great about him. This guy's always prepared, always ready to play."
Not getting any "reps" in all the spring workouts and minicamps did not bother him, Huard insists.
"You're foolish if you don't prepare," he said. "Maybe physically I didn't get as many snaps. But I felt comfortable out there (on Sunday)."
With the Patriots crippled by the loss of Brady, Huard almost led the Chiefs to a most improbable victory. He hit a touchdown pass to keep them back in the game and then connected with Devard Darling on a cross-country catch-and-run that brought them all the way to the New England 5 with less than a minute left.
If Dwayne Bowe had not dropped Huard's fade pass in the end zone, the Chiefs might have had the upset of the season.
"If you are a backup quarterback (who is) going to play at some point during the season, sometimes it's best if it's early," Huard said. "You are coming off training camp, coming off playing in a few preseason games.
"Granted, it wasn't much."
Also granted is the fact Huard is paid well for his services. He signed a three-year contract in 2007 that will average $2.5 million per season.
Whether the Chiefs win or lose the next two or three weeks while Croyle is out remains to be seen. But Huard will have the full confidence of coaches and players who have never seen him sleepwalk through a practice or nod off during a meeting.
"He's been around a long time and there's a reason he's been around a long time," tight end Tony Gonzalez said. "It's not just about his being able to go out there and play quarterback. He's got a good attitude. He's always ready. He knows how to prepare. He'll do well, no doubt about it."
When Trent Green was knocked unconscious in the 2006 opener, Huard went 5-3 while starting the next eight games, laying the foundation for a season that went all the way to the playoffs.
Of course, Green was back under center the minute doctors cleared him. The same will be true with Croyle. Regardless of how well Huard does, he has virtually no chance to remain the starter.
"It's the direction we're headed in," Edwards said. "We've invested a lot in Brodie. We want to see what he can do. He has to play. We want him to play. If Damon wins games, that's great. That gives us some momentum. We'll cross that bridge. But when Brodie's back, he needs to go back in there and play."
It's not even worth discussing, Huard says.
"Everyone wants to talk about the future here. Honestly, it kind of gets old. So let's just worry about the Raiders on Sunday."
Edwards has also said Thigpen, a second-year pro who's thrown only six passes in the NFL, will also play while Croyle is out.
Again, Huard says, it doesn't matter.
"This is more of less (his role) for most of my career, coming off the bench, going in there and filling in when need be," he said.
"Everybody wants to be the starter, but for some reason or another, that hasn't materialized."
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Haynesworth eager for physical clash with Jaguars
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- All Pro defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth can't wait until Sunday for the Tennessee Titans' season opener.
It's the day that Haynesworth can start proving his worth to the Titans as their franchise player, and the first game in which he can start earning his way toward free agency after this season. Maybe the 6-foot-6, 320-pound Haynesworth is being politically correct, but that's not why he is so excited about the first game.
"I'm not really even thinking about that," Haynesworth said. "All I'm thinking about is playing lights-out football, football I know I can play. Go out there and dominate the game."
Haynesworth did just that so well in 2007 that he was selected to the All Pro team and voted to his first Pro Bowl. The Titans responded by slapping him with the franchise tag. But he also missed three games with a strained hamstring, which the Titans considered in negotiations on a long-term deal that fell short in July.
Before he signed his one-year deal for $7.25 million, the Titans agreed to write into the contract incentives allowing Haynesworth to become a free agent, including playing 53 percent of the defensive snaps.
Haynesworth, who has said he would like to stay in Tennessee, said he isn't thinking of 2009 yet.
"All I'm doing is taking one game at a time, going out and playing my game," he said.
Doing that will earn Haynesworth a multi-million dollar contract from somebody next year, and he couldn't be happier right now because the Titans get to open against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday -- a near mirror image of Tennessee in an AFC South divisional game that will be decided by the linemen.
"These are probably the top two physical teams in the NFL," Haynesworth said. "I can't name any other teams that are more physical than both of us, so it's going to be a dog fight. It's going to be a real war out there out there on the field. I'm excited because this is my type of game."
Haynesworth's teammates love him because he cannot be blocked by one lineman. The double-teams Haynesworth faces frees them up, and they held opponents to 92.4 yards rushing per game last season ranking fifth in the NFL. In the three games Haynesworth missed? The Titans gave up 166, 166, and 148 yards rushing in each of those games -- all losses.
"He creates unpredictable havoc for offenses that even just because he's a good player that you couldn't see coming because he jumps gaps and does all kinds of spin moves and does unorthodox stuff so definitely having him would be a big help," Titans middle linebacker Ryan Fowler said.
The first game Haynesworth missed last year was against Jacksonville on Nov. 11, and the Jaguars beat them 28-13.
Jaguars quarterback David Garrard, who also missed that game, called Haynesworth one of the league's top tackles.
"You have to do things to help protect yourself from him," Garrard said. "He's not somebody that we're looking over at all, I don't think any team out there would overlook him. He is definitely what coach likes to call a `game-wrecker' so we're going to make sure that we keep our eyes on him."
The Jaguars will be without center Brad Meester because of a biceps injury. Jacksonville coach Jack Del Rio said the key is finding someone who can block Haynesworth.
"That's easier said than done, he's a pretty good football player. They've got a pretty good front, in fact, they've got good players throughout their defense," Del Rio said.
And that starts with Haynesworth, the guy still remembered by many for his angry outburst in 2006 when he swiped his cleated foot across the face of Dallas center Andre Gurode. Anger management counseling aside, he channeled his emotions into his play as he had a career-high six sacks, 69 tackles, 23 quarterback pressures and six tackles for losses last year.
He said it starts with the first play and goes to his last on the field.
"I'm going to come off and dominate my guy to make sure you know that I'm the best he's ever faced," Haynesworth said.
In the NFL, that pays well sooner or later.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Manning experiences breakthrough
TAMPA, Fla. Quarterback Eli Manning ended one prevailing trend of his career. Now, the New York Giants have to see if they can end another.
For the first time in his four years as a pro, Manning won a playoff game. More specifically, it was his best outing in a game of this significance as he efficiently guided New York to a 24-14 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday in the first round of the playoffs.
Manning completed 20 of 27 passes for 185 yards, two touchdowns and, most important, no interceptions. While this wasn't a defining game, it was perhaps an awakening of the talented young man who the Giants traded for shortly after the San Diego Chargers took him No. 1 overall in 2004.
"We have been in the playoffs the last three seasons and I haven't played particularly well in the two games before," said Manning, who was far more loquacious than usual. In fact, there were moments when the normally unemotional Manning sounded downright excited, describing drives and specific plays in great detail. Gone was the hang-dog, scolded-child look that has defined Manning to this point.
Just to come in here and play well, give our team a chance to win the game and make some big plays, that was quite a situation to be in," Manning said. "But now you can't be just satisfied with what you're doing. It's about the bigger picture and keeping this thing going."
Tom Coughlin, the lame-duck coach seeking a healthy contract extension after spending about a year on the hot seat, talked about how "steady" and "efficient" Manning was this game. Again, this is in contrast to how impatient Coughlin was with Manning a year ago.
In the grand scheme, the Giants now face the Dallas Cowboys in the divisional playoffs next Sunday. Dallas swept the two regular-season games, winning both with relative ease.
The popular thinking is that it's hard to beat one team three times in a season. Problem is: popular thinking is wrong.
There have been 17 situations since 1970 in which a team has attempted to complete a three-game series sweep, 11 resulting in sweeps.
Those are hardly insurmountable odds for the Giants, but the point is simply that the better team usually wins. For the majority of this season, Dallas has been better than most teams in the NFL, which is why it is 13-3. However, the Cowboys haven't played particularly well over the past month, going 2-2 in December and playing downright awful against the Washington Redskins in the season finale in a game that was meaningless for the Cowboys.
By contrast, New York is a team playing with obvious momentum. Over their past three games, the Giants came back from an early deficit to run away from the Buffalo Bills, went toe-to-toe in a loss to the undefeated New England Patriots and then took care of Tampa Bay with the ease of one of the balmy winter breezes blowing across Florida's Gulf Coast.
In many ways, this was a Manning-type day. One of those beautiful days where you can picture him waking up late in his frat house bedroom, then rolling out to the intramural field for a game against Delta Upsilon.
That's the way Manning has appeared to play for most of his career, in sharp contrast to his hyper-kinetic brother Peyton. It's one reason why he has thrown more interceptions than any other quarterback in the league since '04 and also why he has infuriated Giants fans and teammates over the years.
But Eli Manning also bested his accomplished brother in an important way Sunday. He won a playoff game in his fourth season in the league. It took Peyton six years to do so.
On Sunday, Eli Manning did that by being different than normal. He was focused, being patient when necessary without exposing himself to a bad play.
"My thought process was to play really safe, don't force anything. (The Buccaneers) do a great job getting turnovers. You want to get the ball out quick, don't throw interceptions and don't get back there too long where they can cause a fumble," Manning said.
Tampa Bay, which has leaned heavily on its defense this season, tried all sorts of games with Manning. The Bucs had their linebackers flash into passing lanes at odds times. Manning saw through it and patiently waited as receivers such as Amani Toomer, who led the way with seven receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown, worked to get open.
The patience also produced a critical 15-play, 92-yard drive in the third quarter that put the game out of reach against a Tampa Bay team that isn't appreciably different than it was in the 2005 playoffs. In short, the Bucs have been able to patchwork their way into the playoffs in recent years, but they are far from a threat, particularly in a league where quarterback play is getting better and better.
Specifically, the youngest Manning was much better than expected. On Sunday, Manning made progress; significant progress.
Will that be enough to appease the critics? Probably not completely, but it may quiet them for awhile.
"You know, it's New York," Toomer said. "There haven't been a lot of times since I've been there when they've loved the quarterback."
Copyright 2008 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved.
Last homecoming week for Holmgren in Green Bay?
KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) -- Shhh! It's so blasphemous it should be whispered, especially around Green Bay.
Mike Holmgren has one up on Vince Lombardi. Two up, even.
Lombardi and Holmgren each have streets named after them in Green Bay, for coaching the Packers to the Super Bowl title. But Lombardi never did what Holmgren will do again Saturday with the Seahawks: lead an opposing team into Lambeau Field for a playoff game.
Seattle is coming back for Saturday's NFC divisional playoffs against the Packers and quarterback Brett Favre, Holmgren's first protege as a head man with the Packers 16 years ago.
"I'm just tickled pink that they haven't taken my street signs down," Holmgren said, nine years removed from leaving to become Seattle's coach and general manager. He gave up the latter title following the Seahawks' 2002 season.
"When we dedicated the street, I drove down it. That was quite something," Holmgren deadpanned, pointing to an imaginary bandstand. "We had the little five-piece polka band right over there."
How much do Packer Backers appreciate Holmgren for winning Green Bay's first Super Bowl in 29 years, in 1996, and then getting the Packers back to the big game the following year?
Holmgren Way is 4 miles long. From Glory Road southeast of Lambeau Field, past Bay Park Square Mall and a short jog of a lane called Brett Favre Pass and ending at Lombardi Avenue near the stadium.
Lombardi Avenue is just 2 miles long, though it's the main drag past the primary entrance to Lambeau.
But before we get carried away with Holmgren vs. Lombardi, Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck -- who spent his first three NFL seasons as Favre's backup in Green Bay -- puts the streets in perspective.
"Holmgren Way? I think there's a Hooters there, isn't there?" Hasselbeck said, correctly. "I'm trying to get T-shirts that say 'Hooters on Holmgren.' That'd be awesome."
This could be Holmgren's last game in Green Bay, which he still calls "a special place," against a team he holds as so special that three of his four grown daughters are technically co-owners of it. He's 59 with four granddaughters who enjoys his bye weeks and offseasons riding his motorcycle across the Arizona desert, at one of his three homes.
While focused on the task of upsetting the second-seeded Packers, Holmgren is obviously enjoying the nostalgia of this potentially final homecoming week. It's Seattle's second playoff game in four years at Green Bay and Holmgren's eighth return for a preseason, regular-season or postseason game since he left the Packers.
"It's the only team like it in existence. You could not have a team in a little city like that, typically, now, anymore," he said. "Owned by the people, and the city. And when they run out of money, or get low in the treasury, the last three times in their history, they appeal to the people. And everybody buys shares. I bought a share for each one of my children.
"It's a very unique place."
He repeated for the third time in three weeks that he and his longtime wife Kathy will take time after the season to consider whether he wants to return for the final season of the new contract he signed shortly after Seattle lost to Pittsburgh in Holmgren's third Super Bowl as a head coach, 23 months ago.
"I'm trying to be wise with it, going to take it a year at a time right now," Holmgren said Wednesday.
Earlier this season, he playfully expressed his envy for the cushier lives of pals Bill Cowher, now a TV analyst, and Bill Parcells, now an executive with the Miami Dolphins.
But Hasselbeck can't see retirement in Holmgren's immediate plans. He's too close to his fire -- a fire Favre warned Hasselbeck about after Holmgren traded for Favre's backup to become the Seahawks' starter in 2001.
Holmgren, a former quarterback at USC, broke into college coaching at San Francisco State (1981) and BYU (1982-85) and then the NFL under Bill Walsh with the 49ers in 1986 as a quarterbacks coach. He's still so controlling of Hasselbeck that he demanded Wednesday that he ditch the black socks and black leg sleeve he was wearing on his right leg only during a morning walkthrough, because it was "not a good look."
By the afternoon practice, Hasselbeck was back in white socks pulled to the knees.
"I don't know anything about retirement, but I think you could say he's mellowed to a certain degree," Hasselbeck said.
Hasselbeck can remember as a young player hearing Favre's stories that Holmgren, as a position coach, was a practical jokester.
"It's not the image I have of him as a head coach," Hasselbeck said.
Hasselbeck has said that for all he has accomplished this season -- a third Pro Bowl, team records for yards (3,966), completions (352) and attempts (562) -- his biggest accomplishment has been finally breaking through Holmgren's sideline intensity. Now, when Holmgren screams at him, Hasselbeck can discern the coaching points through the ruckus.
Ron Wolf said Holmgren hasn't mentioned retirement to him -- and he talks to Holmgren once a month by telephone.
Wolf was Green Bay's first-year general manager who was considering Cowher and Parcells to be the Packers' new head coach for the 1992 season. Then Holmgren arrived for his interview, a California kid whom people in Green Bay thought would bring a surfboard along with this thing called the West Coast offense into the Wisconsin winters.
"They had me waiting in the lobby. The lobby was a collage of pictures," Holmgren said. "As a youngster, I remember all those players. I memorized their names. You just see them and you see pictures of Coach Lombardi and I drove in on Lombardi Avenue. I'm going, 'Whoa!' Bart Starr and the great players that were coaches there later on.
"What I tried to do at the time, and I was kind of soaking that in as a fan -- (was say) 'I absolutely have to be myself.' There's no way anyone could be Coach Lombardi again."
Wolf saw that Holmgren was plenty good enough. Sixteen years and three Super Bowls later, Wolf's been proven and re-proven correct.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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