Look at him now: a year ago, Mike Holmgren was ready to fire himself as coach. But the Seahawks' remarkable metamorphosis--on and off the field--has put him in position to win his second Super Bowl.(PREVIEW)

Twelve months ago, Mike Holmgren had coached his last game in Seattle. It was a done deal. As he walked off the field after losing to the Rams in the playoffs, he fired himself.

"I said to myself, 'This is it,' "he says now, sitting in his office overlooking the practice fields at the team's complex. "I came away thinking I might take a break here."

He told his wife, Kathy. She asked him to wait and call owner Paul Allen to find out whether he was wanted. Holmgren gave himself a couple of days. He didn't want to leave based on an emotional reaction to a difficult season and unbearable circumstances in the front office, where team president Bob Whitsitt ...