i figured MH would come in with the axe, but he surprised even me with his rationale. thats one good decision, so im on board. im not a fan of his system, the 4-3 especially, and with many of his draft picks. but he does offer specialty in one of our critical areas of need. so at best, im going in sceptically. if mangini gets the players he needs for his system, then im all in for holmgren. if we see the talent start to change on the defensive side of the ball, im gonna be real concerned.

holmgren should get the benefit of the doubt since he's proved he knows what he's doing, but his decisions should always be scrutinized. even he admits this is new territory for him, so no one should just assume he is right simply because he says so.

@miktoxic said:

i'm not, not in the slightest. when's the last time the Seahawks were scary?...but i do like the decision to retain EM so he's 1-0 so far. if this Cribbs thing has real legs, make that 1-1.

@firebiker911 said:

I just choked a bit on holmgrens kool-aid after seeing the pathetic offer they gave cribbs...come on MH the guy is sick of being jerked around by one regime after another...the fans are sick of cribbs being jerked around by one regime after another ,do whats right and PAY THE MAN!

@4browns said:

Coolade, Cool Aid, Kool Aid, Schmool Aid, I'm excited and optimistic, you knew what I meant.

@4browns said:

Yea, Cool Aid was that benefit concert to aid the effort against Global Warming. You know, it had bands participate like ABBA and Aha, and The Guess Who, The Leningrad Cowboys, Jorma Kaukonen, Ace of Base, Jewel (from Alaska), Rush, Bryan Adams, Loverboy, Anne Murray, Neil Young, Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Chilliwack. Special appearances were made by Ice-T, Ice Cube, and Vanilla Ice. Master of Ceremonies was William "The Refrigerator" Perry. And here is the hotel in which they all stayed (see the link):

http://travel.webshots.com/album/65902383qiVvot

@chubbs said:

I am not sure how i feel about the West Coast offense and having the right QB's playing in it. I would much rather see a phenominal running game and a lights out defense and play with our amazing special teams to dominate the field position battle and win games that way. Maybe its because i saw how well it worked for the ravens during their super bowl run (i live in maryland). I don't have any confidence in our passing game or our QB's/WR's. If i had to take one O-line+RB combination for our team next year i would stick with the browns personell and add a drafted RT.

FYI, the "West Coast Offense" was first run first here in Cleveland under Paul Brown and Otto Graham. Bill Walsh, PBs asst. coach in Cincinnati merely tweeked PBs schemes then claimed to have "invented" the WCO. (He didn't even invent the name....Bernie Kosar did that, another FYI). Walsh did a masterful job at it, just don't let anyone say that he "invented" it. If the WCO is to be played here under Holmgren, all that is happening is that it will be coming home.

I am not sure how i feel about the West Coast offense and having the right QB's playing in it. I would much rather see a phenominal running game and a lights out defense and play with our amazing special teams to dominate the field position battle and win games that way. Maybe its because i saw how well it worked for the ravens during their super bowl run (i live in maryland). I don't have any confidence in our passing game or our QB's/WR's. If i had to take one O-line+RB combination for our team next year i would stick with the browns personell and add a drafted RT.

@bonedawg said:

You're right, we haven't played .500 ball but we now have the best look at long term success that we have had since Marty ball. I for one don't want to see the process stopped and reversed for the sake of a new regime's ego and favors owed to friends and collegues.

The difference is now we are in a much better position to build on what we have. This team was built from the inside of the roster out. If we add one or two guys that are better than most at their positions then we are a really good team, for the long term. Character, attitude, philosophy, and trust have all been installed so the hard parts have been taken care of. This isn't a team that signed LeCharles Bentley or Dante' Stallworth when the core of the team was in shambles. Then we draft William Greens and Courtney Browns as saviors. This is a team put together for the future and to bring somebody else's ideas in here can really disrupt the foundation that is in place now. It would take extraordinary circumstances and an extraordinary coach to continue Mangini's vision, which by the way, is the the BEST vision for this team. And what does it say to players who have been here for awhile? It says that they play for a schizophrenic company with zero stability. Which contributes greatly to the lack of culture and identity that until now, we haven't had. When contracts are up, players will walk. Its bad on top of bad if a coaching change is made this year. So, you'll get .500 ball for a few more years, then, we blow it up again and the cycle continues.

First off i think mangini deserves another year to finish what he started for the better or worse ,with that said and looking at mangini from a full body of work like holmgren will/has..for every good thing mangini has done you can find at least one at least equally bad where he didnt do well or done things in an unacceptable manner..what comes to my mind is holmgren will be fair but EM has many black holes that will have to be filled in...

The last thing we want or need to see is another embattled regime...and if holmgren feels he cant trust or work with EM or his staff members then he/they simply have to go..its mikes way or no way and im ready to go whichever way he sees fit..the man is a walking encyclopedia of football knowledge and a proven winner lets have a little faith that if he needs to replace mangini for the better good that this will be the last time in a long time that it will be necessary..

Like i said im all for the genie finishiing what he started but only if it complements holmgrens path and not poisons it..i still have doubts about mangini's OC and their offensive game in general ,but if MH wants to go with it or go a different way im with that as well...im just glad we have a guy worthy of being president..

@mopaji said:

another 3 years of .500 ball? I would love it if we had been playing .500 ball all these years!