BEREA, Ohio — The president still was reacting like a coach. Still suffering the way he did for 17 years, pacing NFL sidelines. Still “simmering,” as Mike Holmgren called it, hours after the loss.

The Cleveland Browns dropped their opener to Cincinnati, a game Holmgren believed they had a chance to win.

Later that evening, eating dinner at a restaurant with his wife Kathy, Holmgren, by his own admission, was “acting like a jackass, a jerk,” quietly brooding over his meal, replaying the what-ifs of the 27-17 defeat.

All day, the next day in his office, Holmgren continued to simmer and quietly second-guess. That night he went home, still angry.

Then came what he calls his “epiphany.”

“What is wrong with you?” asked his wife, who also is his conscience. “If you want to act this way and get all churned up and get mad at everybody, get back into coaching, because you’re not there now. You’re the team president. I thought we already had this talk. Do you want to be angry all the time?”

Sitting on a sofa in his spacious office suite Friday, almost six weeks after that loss to the Bengals, former Seahawks head coach Holmgren, in his second year as the Browns’ president, readily admits, “She was absolutely right.”

The next day Holmgren called his new head coach Pat Shurmur into his office and told him about the epiphany.

“I don’t want to be walking around here mad all the time,” he told Shurmur. “My door’s always open. If you have questions about anything, if I can help in any way, but I’m not coaching anymore. You’re the coach now and I’m here to help you.”

In this new job, Holmgren sits in a booth on Sundays, high above the field, wearing a tie.

“Can you believe it?” he asks.

But he still watches the game like a coach, still grades the game tapes and reviews his notes with Shurmur every Tuesday.

“The same coaching frustrations crop up,” Holmgren said. “I’ve had to learn to deal with it. I have to. It’s one of my jobs now to be supportive of Pat and help him be the best coach he can be. And that does not include banging on the table in frustration.”

Holmgren’s successful NFL history is apparent on the walls and shelves of his office. There is a framed picture of the ride he took on his players’ shoulders after his Green Bay Packers beat the New England Patriots and won Super Bowl XXXI.

Helmets from the Packers, Seahawks and Browns rest on a book shelf. A nook in his office has pictures from his days with the Packers and framed photos of all seven of his grandchildren. There are photos of Holmgren with presidents Obama and Clinton.

A huge photo of fireworks exploding over Cleveland Browns Stadium hangs over the sofa. The team’s mission statement, signed by Holmgren, is written in the middle of the picture.

Mike Holmgren is not in Seattle any more.

Two years ago, after the “Great Housecleaning,” Holmgren, who coached in Seattle from 1999 to 2008, seriously considered returning to the Seahawks.

Briefly, he was excited about the possibility, but he wanted full responsibility for running the franchise. The Seahawks never offered that to him. Their handling of the situation was clumsy and dishonest.

“They didn’t want me,” Holmgren said, “and that’s OK. I’m a big boy. I’ve been around a long time. And once I got my ego in check, I mean it would have been nice, but once I got here and the challenge of this, I was off to the races.”

Holmgren moved to a Browns franchise that has had two winning seasons since it came back into the league in 1999. Shurmur is the sixth coach in the 13-year history of the new Browns.

Fixing the franchise is The X Games of rebuilding.

“It’s much different emotionally,” says Holmgren of how different his new job is to coaching. “You hire who you think the best man for the job is and do what you can to help him be successful. You’re passing the baton, handing him the ball and then you have to sit back and watch. It’s like watching your child play. But there will be, and there already has been, a great feeling watching when it works.”

Holmgren is 63 and in the second year of a five-year deal with the Browns. He is blessed with a hands-off owner, Randy Lerner, who allows him freedom he never would have had in Seattle.

When he took the job, people wondered if Holmgren merely was treading water, anticipating an eventual return to coaching. Will he ever coach again?

“I don’t think so,” he says. “I did it for a long time and to do it and to do it properly, where you’re not conning anybody and you’re not taking any shortcuts, you have to be all in. That’s time-wise. That’s emotionally. I don’t think I’d be willing to go all in as a coach. And while I work hard now, the emotional attachment is different.”

This is the job he wanted. Holmgren runs the building. He oversees both the football and business operations.

“Holy smokes, I even have a budget,” he jokes. “Imagine that.”

Echoes of the Seahawks are all over the Browns’ headquarters. A gaggle of former Hawks assistants were on the field during practice Friday. Holmgren has surrounded himself with longtime members of his football family.

Gil Haskell, his former offensive coordinator, occupies the office next to Holmgren’s and is his senior adviser. Keith Gilbertson, an offensive assistant for three years in Seattle, is a senior offensive assistant.

Former Seattle defensive coordinator Ray Rhodes joined the staff this year as senior defensive assistant. Tom Headlee, an assistant for 10 years in Seattle, is a scout. And Shurmur is the nephew of the late Fritz Shurmur, who was Holmgren’s longtime defensive coordinator.

“Fritz was a crusty, wonderful man and a great help to me,” he says. “I’m hoping I can be that guy for Pat.”

Holmgren, whose Browns play the Seahawks on Sunday, still is in the early stages of cementing his vision into reality. Cleveland is only 7-14 since he arrived, but Holmgren’s history says he won’t fail.

“This,” he says with a broad smile, “is my last great adventure.”

Steve Kelley: 206-464-2176 or skelley@seattletimes.com

When the Seattle Seahawks take on the Cleveland Browns on the road October 23, the team will be coming off a bye week after their big win over the New York Giants. The bye week was a good thing, allowing some of the injured Seahawks and chance to heal up.

The extra week has helped clear the Seahawks’ injury report. The latest edition shows offensive guard Robert Gallery(notes), wide receiver Mike Williams, running back Marshawn Lynch(notes), and linebacker Malcolm Smith(notes) participating in full practices October 19 and looking good for availability on Sunday. Tight end Zach Miller and center Max Unger(notes) did not practice are still doubtful.

The only other name on the injury report is Tarvaris Jackson(notes). He suited up for Wednesday’s practice and participated in the run-drill. He’s not throwing passes yet, and his status is still unclear. The team is impressed with the speed of his recovery, but is still moving ahead as if Charlie Whitehurst(notes) will be the starting quarterback in Cleveland.

The good news there is that both of them demonstrated they can move the offense and get points in the win over the Giants. Whichever QB ends up under center, I think Seattle will come back home with another big road win and a 3-3 record. I expect to see Whitehurst, but Jackson could complete his recovery in time.

If they want to compete in the NFC West, they need wins. The San Francisco Giants have given notice that the division will not be won with a losing overall record this year. The 49ers are at 5-1. Only the undefeated Green Bay Packers have a better record, and the New England Patriots are the only other team in the NFL at 5-1.

Seahawks on a streak

Seattle has won two of their last three, and came close to a comeback win in the loss against the Atlanta Falcons. The offense is producing points, especially in the hurry-up. Defensively, the Seahawks are making crucial stops when they need to.

The Browns are a different story. They have an identical 2-3 record, but their wins came against the winless Indianapolis Colts and the equally winless Miami Dolphins. On a sidenote, how odd does that sound, the Colts and Dolphins with zero wins between them?

The Browns’ offense will likely missing running back Peyton Hillis(notes), who is out with a hamstring injury. The Browns’ injury report indicates he did not practice Wednesday, so it’s doubtful he will be on the field for kickoff Sunday. This one looks like a ripe opportunity for the Seahawks to pick up a road win. After the game, Seattle fans will have to throw their support behind Cleveland for the next game. The Browns will take on the 49ers in Candlestick Park October 30.

Jeff Musall has been a fan of the Seattle Seahawks since he was a kid living in a small Idaho town, watching Jim Zorn move the team down the field.

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CLEVELAND – With the regular season set to kick-off this weekend, it’s once again time to predict how the Cleveland Browns will do this season.

Following two consecutive 5-11 campaigns, both of which yours truly predicted correctly I might add, the Browns made significant changes during the offseason.

Eric Mangini is out as head coach, Pat Shurmur is in. Rob Ryan and the 3-4 defense is gone, Dick Jauron and the 4-3 defense is in. Brian Daboll and his what in the world are we doing offense is out, Shurmur and the west coast offense is in.

While I think all of the changes were necessary, I’m not sure this was the year to institute all of these changes, because of the NFL Lockout. If you remember my season prediction from last season, I was in favor of keeping Mangini and his staff even with Mike Holmgren coming in as team President and Tom Heckert as General Manager. However, I have done a complete 180 from this time last year. Now I wish Holmgren would have just pulled the plug on the Eric Mangini era before last season and brought in a coaching staff that was familiar with the type of system that is in place now.

I like the fact that the Browns are running the west coast offense. I think it is the perfect system for quarterback Colt McCoy and he seems to be learning the system faster than I thought he would. I am also impressed with the leadership the second year pro from Texas is showing. I’m not sure I wanted to see what McCoy would look like in this offense if he didn’t conduct four separate practice sessions during the lockout over the summer.

As for the offense as a whole, I think it will be better this season, but I do have some concerns. As a whole, the biggest concern I have on offense is depth, or the lack there of. Two guys who were going to be key parts of this offense are already on injured reserve and are done for the season in left guard Eric Steinbach and running back Brandon Jackson.

Steinbach and Joe Thomas were solid on the left side of the offensive line, now with Steinbach out, will the Browns go with rookie Jason Pinkston at left guard or someone else, we’ll see come Sunday.

Jackson was the change of pace running back the Browns really needed to go with Peyton Hillis. Jackson would have provided another pass catching option for McCoy especially in third down situations. Jackson’s pass catching ability while with the Green Bay packers was a big reason why the Browns signed him in the offseason.

Because of Jackson being lost for the year, the depth issue now goes into the running game as well. While I expect Peyton Hillis to follow up his outstanding 2010 season with another 1,000 yard season, I hope Hillis doesn’t wear down as the season gets into December like he did last season. Four of the Browns final five games are against the Steelers and Ravens, and Hillis will need to be a key to late season success running the ball. While it’s nice that Montario Hardesty is back this season, he’s had a history of injuries throughout his college and his rookie season with the Browns. Hardesty needs to get through this season relatively healthy. Oh and lets not forget that Hillis is on the cover of the Madden 12 this year, hopefully the dreaded Madden curse doesn’t follow Hillis.

As for the passing game, well depth there is a concern with me as well, especially at wide receiver. The Browns did draft Greg Little in the 2nd round of April’s draft and he has played pretty well in the preseason, he’s a rookie and the preseason is done and the regular season is here, it’s not the same, not even close. Mohamad Massaquoi missed the majority of training camp and I’m not convinced he is 100 percent recovered from the foot injury he suffered during the final “Camp Colt” during the lockout. It’s also a make or break year in my mind for Brian Robiskie, it’s his third year and he needs to become the playmaker the Browns thought he could be when they made him a second round pick in 2009. I’m also curous how Pat Shurmur will use Josh Cribbs. Will he be more of pass receiver or will his all around talents be utilized in a variety of rolls. I think the strength of the passing game is the tight ends. Ben Watson is the veteran of the group and while he did miss a good amount of the preseason, he’ll be fine in this offense. I also see Evan Moore being a huge key to offensive success, especially in the red zone. Add in rookie Jordan Cameron and McCoy has three terrific options to throw to from the tight end position.

As for the defense, I like the fact they are going back to the 4-3 defense. While I think the defense will it’s struggles at times, it will have some bright spots as well. I think it will be a terrific year for linebacker D’Qwell Jackson. First of all he looks healthy for the first time in two years, second of all his game is made for the 4-3 defense and you certainly saw that during the preseason. Jackson was all over the field making tackles and putting pressure on the quarterback. It helps that the Browns

have some bulk up front, especially in first round pick Phil Taylor. While, I don’t expects Taylor to put up numbers like the Lions Ndamukong Suh did in his rookie season, I expect Taylor to have an impact on the numbers for other members of the defense. Taylor will command double teams and should open up holes for the linebackers to shut down opposing running games and put pressure on the quarterback.

As for the secondary, I expect them to be improved this season as well. T.J Ward and Joe Haden were very impressive in 2010 and should only get better in their second seasons. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ward is among the leaders in tackles among defensive backs and Haden to be among the league leaders in interceptions among defensive backs.

As for special teams, the biggest question I have is will Josh Cribbs get the opportunity to return kickoffs now that the league has moved kickoffs up to the 35-yard line from the 30. I see a lot more touchbacks this season than in previous years, which will make the game not as exciting to watch. It will be interesting to see how Richard McGee will do punting the ball with Reggie Hodges on injured reserve. Yes the Browns will have their share of punts again this season. As for Phil Dawson, I expect him to get his share of field goal opportunities but hopefully he’ll get to kick more extra points than he has in previous seasons.

So where will the Browns finish the 2011 season? I think it will depend on how the Browns do before they get to their bye week in week five. The Browns open the season at home against the Bengals, a team that is a complete mess. After that the Browns go to Indianapolis, who may still be without Peyton Manning, which makes the Colts a very vulnerable team followed by back to back home games against the Dolphins and Titans which are certainly winnable games. The Browns need to get off to a good start because the back end of the schedule is brutal. In the final five games the Browns have both of their matchups with the Ravens and Steelers with a trip to Arizona sandwiched in between. Add two trips to the Bay Area to take on Oakland and San Francisco in October, it’s important for the Browns to get off to a good start in the first four weeks of the season.

So with that, how will the Browns do in 2011? I think this team will get better as the season goes on, but with having to make three trips to the pacific time zone and facing your two toughest division rivals with four of your final five games, it’s going to be tough for the Browns to overcome.

The Cleveland Browns will break their string of 5-11 seasons and will finish 6-10 in 2011.

Check here and here for a complete list of the Cleveland Browns’ roster moves.

Surprise moves: I may be on an island with this one, but I thought offensive tackle Branndon Braxton had a chance to make the team. Braxton is raw, but the Browns are thin on the offensive line. They could have taken on a project. Braxton has good size and decent feet.

Cleveland also released third-string quarterback Jarrett Brown. He had the strongest arm on the team and showed flashes. The Browns are hoping to get him back on the practice squad.

Terminating the contract of Demetrius Williams was a mild surprise. The former Baltimore Raven is experienced and made a few plays in camp. But it wasn’t enough to take playing time away from youngsters like rookie receiver Greg Little.

No-brainers: Cornerback Coye Francies is a 2009 draft pick under former coach Eric Mangini who barely hung onto a roster spot for two years. But with the coaching change, you had the sense Francies’ days were numbered. He was released.

There was only one tailback spot open behind Peyton Hillis and Montario Hardesty. Armond Smith beat out Quinn Porter in a close race that came down to the final preseason game.

Tailback Brandon Jackson (toe) also was put on injured reserve. Jackson, a free-agent pickup from the Green Bay Packers, will be out for the season.

What’s next: The Browns will scan the waiver wires in search of depth. The preseason proved depth is desperately needed at several positions, particularly on the offensive line. Cleveland’s backups have been thoroughly outplayed in exhibition games. This team isn’t built to sustain many injuries.

CLEVELAND (AP) – Pristine one week, penalized the next.

The second time around was sloppy for the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions.

Colt McCoy threw three touchdown passes – two to tight end Evan Moore – in the first half, but the Browns blew a 15-point lead after halftime and lost 30-28 to the Lions on Friday night in a penalty-filled exhibition that showed both teams have plenty to fix in the next three weeks before the season opener.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do,” McCoy said. “There’s plenty to clean up.”

“Way too sloppy with penalties,” said Lions coach Jim Schwartz.

McCoy finished 10 of 18 for 96 yards, his second straight solid performance running first-year Browns coach Pat Shurmur’s new West Coast offense. McCoy was victimized by a few drops and wasn’t as sharp as in last week’s win over the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers. However, the second-year QB showed poise, ran away from Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh and didn’t force any throws while playing most of the first half.

“A lot of people wanted to anoint us after last week,” said McCoy, who was pressured and knocked down several times. “There were a lot of rough things here and there.”

The Lions (2-0) trailed 28-13 early in the third but got a 20-yard TD pass from Drew Stanton in the third and Dave Rayner’s 48-yard field goal with 9:51 left.

Referee Mike Carey and his officiating crew had a busy night. The teams were assessed 26 penalties for 211 yards.

Moore caught TDs of 2 and 21 yards, rookie Greg Little grabbed a 13-yarder from McCoy, and rookie Armond Smith had an 81-yard TD run in the third for the Browns (1-1), who were without eight starters, including star running back Peyton Hillis. Smith also had two fumbles, helping the Lions rally.

“We went to getting pretty sloppy,” Shurmur said. “Numerous penalties and two fumbles. Those are killers. The guys in the game are in charge of winning the game.”

Detroit quarterback Matthew Stafford threw one TD pass to Nate Burleson. Stafford, who threw two TDs in last week’s 34-3 blowout of Cincinnati, went 6 of 10 for 85 yards in four series.

Jason Hanson kicked two field goals for the Lions, who also rested several starters, including wide receiver Calvin Johnson, because of injuries.

“We did a good job considering we had a couple of key guys out,” Stafford said. “The guys who stepped in played well. Our other quarterbacks played well, too.”

McCoy seems perfectly suited for the West Coast attack, an offense that puts a premium on accuracy, timing and precision – by the QB and receivers. Earlier this week, McCoy revealed he spent time during the NFL lockout in Mississippi learning the offense’s many nuances from Brett Favre, who was taught it in Green Bay by Browns president Mike Holmgren.

With the Browns thin at wide receiver, Moore, who showed potential last season but has had injury issues, could become McCoy’s favorite target. The 6-foot-6, 250-pounder certainly looks the part, but it remains to be seen if he can handle it. McCoy found him twice in the first half, helping the Browns build a 21-10 lead.

Moore later took a hard hit on a 17-yard reception. He got up slowly and remained in the game. Moore didn’t return to the sideline after halftime, and Shurmur confirmed the fourth-year suffered a head injury.

“I don’t know exactly the final analysis on that,” Shurmur said.

The Browns’ first possession was poor – two dropped passes and a 1-yard run that set the tone for the night. But Cleveland got the ball back when rookie defensive end Jabaal Sheard stripped Lions running back Jahvid Best. McCoy made the Lions pay with his quick TD toss to Moore.

Stafford came back and tied it with his 4-yard strike to Burleson, who made a leaping catch in the back of the end zone and was able to get both feet down. Burleson then mocked Cleveland’s crowd by mimicking the chalk toss that NBA star LeBron James made famous with the Cavaliers.

McCoy’s second TD toss to Moore put the Browns ahead 14-10. After Jordan Norwood’s 20-yard punt return, McCoy lofted a pass into the end zone for Moore, who made a sliding over-the-shoulder catch in the right corner that was first ruled out of bounds. However, the call was overturned by a video replay.

McCoy’s TD pass to Little followed a sequence of five penalties – three by the Browns, two by the Lions – in six plays. It was Little’s first TD in over two years because he had to sit out last season at North Carolina for having improper dealings with an agent, and he celebrated by punting the ball into the stands.

That didn’t please Shurmur, who spoke with the second-round pick on the sideline.

“I told him not to do that,” Shurmur said.

Little seemed to get the message.

“I’m sorry I did it because of the scrutiny that comes after that type of thing,” he said. “I wish I could have it as a souvenir, but some lucky fan has it all his own.”

McCoy also avoided any major contact with Suh, fined $20,000 on Wednesday by the league for a hit on Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton last week. Suh only got his hands on McCoy once, pushing him out of bounds to end a scramble.

“He was definitely feeling pressure in the pocket,” said Lions defensive tackle Corey Williams. “He was kind of moving around, but we weren’t able to get him down.”

Detroit’s offense was missing one of its main cogs as Johnson was a late scratch with a bruised shoulder. A Lions spokesman said Johnson was held out as a precaution.

 (Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)