Mike Holmgren Talks About Leaving the Cleveland Browns
Former Cleveland Browns president Mike Holmgren essentially gave his farewell address on Tuesday, meeting with the Cleveland media to discuss his three years with the organization.
Naturally, there was some regret to be had.
"“I think we did a lot of great things here,” said Holmgren. “The tough part that I will feel bad about is that I wasn’t able to help enough to put a winning product on the field yet. [Randy Lerner] certainly deserved that.” (Source: Cleveland.com)"
Holmgren isn’t sure if he’ll stay with the team until the end of the season, but he does believe the Browns found their quarterback in Brandon Weeden. With a player like Weeden at the helm and Tom Heckert guiding the team as the general manager (for now), Holmgren believes the team is truly heading in the right direction. Despite the Browns’ 1-6 record in 2012 (and a 10-29 record under Holmgren), he appears to be right about that.
Interestingly enough, Holmgren didn’t necessarily rule out a return to coaching and even considered coaching the team after Eric Mangini was fired in 2010.
"“I thought a lot about it, what I was willing to do, what I wasn’t willing to do,” he said. “At that time I wasn’t ready for it. I thought I’d be shortchanging the organization.” (Source: Cleveland.com)"
It’s always disappointing to see someone not make it to the end of a contract, but that’s life in the NFL. Coaches and front office personnel often face tenures as short as the careers of the players on the field. Nevertheless, Holmgren has helped steer this team into a better, more optimistic direction. While that hasn’t equated to wins just yet, it is certainly a major accomplishment.