Mike Holmgren: Teams Must Be Careful Pursuing Former NFL Coach

Mike Holmgren is a Super Bowl-winning coach, so he's invariably going to be pursued if he says he's interested in returning to the sidelines. 

And that appears to be the case, telling ESPN, "If anyone is interested, I'll listen."

But teams must err on the side of caution when pursuing the former head coach of the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers.

In short, Holmgren certainly qualifies as a worthy candidate to occupy one of the seven available head coaching positions in the NFL right now, but there are questions about his overall desire.

After all, the 64-year-old left the Seahawks to become president of the Cleveland Browns in 2009. He's also older now, which makes you wonder if he'd be interested in sticking with a struggling franchise for very long.

For example, the Kansas City Chiefs are in need of a new head coach, but it could be a lengthy rebuilding process for the team. Would Holmgren stay committed to Kansas City if things didn't turn around in a hurry?

That's really what it comes down to—Is Holmgren just mildly interested or is he committed? You can have all the experience and coaching ability in the world, but if you aren't committed, things can go south quickly.

Holmgren will also most certainly make demands in terms of the level of control he has with a franchise. That was one of the points of contention when he was with the Seahawks. If a franchise wants to have the control to make the majority of the decisions, Holmgren may not be the man for the job.

If Holmgren is really interested in returning to the sidelines, it would be hard to imagine him not landing one of the several available head coaching positions in the NFL, but teams should pay close attention to what he says during interviews.

His level of interest needs to be determined before jumping at the chance to hire him.

What are your thoughts?