KIRKLAND, Wash. (AP) -Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren said surgery forced him to miss two days of minicamp, although he wouldn't say what was wrong.
``I didn't die, all right?'' a smiling Holmgren said Thursday after the team's final minicamp practice. ``No, I had a little surgery done on Monday. That's all I'm really going to say about it. ... I just need a little time to recover from it and we're all set.''
The team repeatedly said the coach was dealing with a minor medical procedure. Holmgren, who turns 60 on Sunday, is beginning his 10th and final season as the Seahawks' coach. He said that until training camp begins July 25 he will go to his cabin in Northern California to read, ride his motorcycle and spend time with family.
``Our 'offseason' really doesn't exist any more, really,'' he said. ``It used to be different, where you had a little more time to get away from it. It's a very emotional business and it takes a lot out of you. All of us need time now to recharge the batteries and find someplace with a little sun perhaps and come back raring to go.''
Holmgren believes leading wide receiver Bobby Engram will be at training camp. Engram, who had a career-high 94 catches last season, skipped voluntary minicamps because he wants more than the final year and $1.7 million in his contract. If Engram is not in camp when veterans are due July 24, the team could fine him for each day he's gone.
``I've mentioned the fact that I thought he would be at training camp, and I still believe that,'' Holmgren said. ``Now Bobby wouldn't be the first player who I've coached - who I like - who felt he needed to make a statement of some kind involving training camp.''
Since Holmgren arrived to coach Seattle before the 1999 season, former receiver Joey Galloway and All-Pro left tackle Walter Jones have held out of training camps because of contract disputes. Jones did it three years in a row and remains one of Holmgren's favorites.
Holmgren added that punter Ryan Plackemeier has joined wide receiver Deion Branch as players likely to miss most if not all of camp. Branch is recovering from knee surgery and might not play in the opener Sept. 7 at Buffalo. Plackemeier had surgery Tuesday for a torn right pectoral muscle, apparently from weightlifting.
``I believe he can do most of the things a punter can do and we will have him back hopefully for the first game,'' Holmgren said.
Until then, Reggie Hodges will handling punting and Plackemeier's duties as holder for kicks. Hodges last appeared in a regular season game in 2005 while with St. Louis and Philadelphia.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
