Holmgren looks to '88 Niners for hope after blowout
KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) — One day after his worst defeat in six seasons with the Seattle Seahawks, Mike Holmgren linked this year's team to the Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers of 1988-89.
No, the veteran coach hasn't lost his mind.
Holmgren acknowledged there was no facet of last weekend's 38-9 loss to Buffalo where the Seahawks (6-5) played well. Offense, defense and special teams — ”We played a horrible game in every area,” he said Monday.
Ever resilient, Holmgren tried to bounce back.
He told his players about another squad that opened the season with high expectations and found itself in similar circumstances, when he was quarterbacks coach in San Francisco in 1988.
”Actually the expectations were even higher,” Holmgren recalled.
The 49ers had just lost 9-3 to Oakland in Week 12 of 1988, dropping to 6-5. They had opened 5-2 but lost three of the next four. They regrouped and won four in a row down the stretch, reaching the playoffs at 10-6.
Most folks know the rest of the story:
Jerry Rice had a remarkable playoff run that included three touchdown catches in a playoff win over Minnesota, two more TDs in the NFC title win over Chicago and an MVP performance in the Super Bowl.
Joe Montana's late 10-yard TD pass to John Taylor sealed San Francisco's 20-16 victory over Cincinnati.
”Being in a situation like that was unusual for the Niners,” said Rice, who now plays for Seattle. ”We found ourselves 6-5 and we said, 'Hey, the coaches can curse, they can do whatever they want to do, they can work us harder, but it's up to the players to get the job done.'
”We committed to each other,” Rice said. ”We had five games to go and we did it. We went to the Super Bowl and won it.”
Holmgren clearly stirred his team with his remarks.
The Seahawks on Monday hardly seemed like they were handled by an opponent that had been winless on the road. There were smiles at practice, and players bounded from the practice facility to the locker room.
”We've had a really good day today,” quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. ”I've got to say I'm very, very impressed with how coach Holmgren handled it. He gave a talk to the team that was — I would call it inspirational.
”That was probably the best talk I've ever heard him give,” Hasselbeck added.
The Seahawks get an extra day to prepare for next week's game against Dallas (4-7). They'll meet on Dec. 6, a Monday night game.
”I love Monday Night Football,” Rice said. ”It's an opportunity for this team to show the world we haven't played our best football.”
Holmgren doesn't plan to give his team an extra day off, since Seattle has a lot of issues to address. The coach even declined to specify the most glaring problem when asked if he could change one thing.
”We just have to play better,” he said. ”We are our own worst enemy. We have prevented ourselves from taking the next step.”
He listed five mistakes on special teams, saying one alone is ”a big deal.” He also cited Buffalo's 60 percent conversion rate on third downs, Hasselbeck's inability to move the ball and Seattle's five dropped passes.
”We're emphasizing the things we think we need to emphasize, but it's not carrying over to the field,” Holmgren said.
Depending on how things go, the Seahawks remain in position to win the NFC West. Despite preseason projections that Seattle was a potential Super Bowl entrant, the team goal was to win the division.
”We're running out of time,” Holmgren said. ”It's down to a five-game season.”
AP-DS-11-29-04 1956EST