"I didn’t appreciate the way he dealt with me, but I learned a lot."

-- Jon Kitna, speaking of Coach Mike Holmgren, Seattle Seahawks

OK, OK, this page is long overdue. My apologies for not getting to it sooner but it's been an emotional ride for me.

As I'm creating this page, Jon Kitna is fighting for a starting quarterback position with the Cincinnati Bengals. Simulataneously, Mike Holmgren is denying a quarterback controversy in Seattle after signing Matt Hasselbeck earlier in the year, and signing Trent Dilfer this week. Dilfer is reported to be in contention for the back-up quarterback position currently held by Brock Huard, but quotes from Hasselbeck and Huard lead one to believe that the starting position is very much wide open and the moment.

Hmpf.

My thoughts? I love Jon Kitna. I was crushed when we let him go and hurt at the way he was treated in Seattle. Fans were as wishy-washy as they come, sometimes me included if I'm to be honest. Most of us loved him as the classy underdog, hometown hero who made it to the NFL, but many of us doubted if he could be the man to lead us to the Super Bowl. Heading the list of doubters was Mike Holmgren.

It is my opinion that Holmgren never believe in him, never wanted him, never supported him. Without that support, it doesn't matter who the quarterback is, he'll be looking for a job the following year. I don't understand any of the quarterback moves under Holmgren's regime. We had a winner in Warren Moon who wanted to stay in Seattle. He'd have been awesome as a tutor for Kitna, one of the very best if you overlook Dave Krieg! (Ah, now you know my other Seahawk love, the GREAT Dave Krieg!) It's not that I have anything against Foley, but why did we sign him? If we wanted a veteran, we had the best.

And why did Holmgren give up on Kitna in 2000? I was at the game in Charlotte when Huard made his debut. That was one of the worst games I have ever seen in my life, no disrespect to Brock Huard intended. The trip was awesome but I can't believe I went to the time and expense of flying to North Carolina to watch that game. It was absolutely horrible.

Anyway, enough of my thoughts. Let's see what has been said officially in newspaper publications. Please, please let me know your thoughts. I'll be happy to post them here with your permission.

Source: Official Bengals Website, August 2001

HOBSON: You’re not a big fan of Holmgren, are you?

KITNA: I didn’t appreciate the way he dealt with me, but I learned a lot. I guess it’s kind of like a father- son type of relationship. When you’re at home, you don’t really appreciate the things he’s doing. But when you leave, you learn that you learned a lot from him. I still don’t like the way he treated me or a lot of the guys. That’s his style.

HOBSON: Kind of brusque?

KITNA: For me, he didn’t talk to me. Never. Not until the end of the season. It was interesting because he came out and made a statement after we were eliminated from the playoffs that we were going to open up the offense and not hold anything back. We went from 27th to 17th in the league (in offense) in the last four or five weeks. I don think there’s a coincidence there.

HOBSON: LeBeau likes to talk to his players. Has he talked more to you than Holmgren did in a couple of years?

KITNA: Yeah, but I understand a little of it. Holmgren was every position in that building. I still think there should have been more communication than there was.

HOBSON: LeBeau is pretty laid back.

KITNA: But his style works for me. He demands respect. He demands you to do things asked of you at that position, but at times he lets you have some freedom.