Mike Holmgren, Cleveland Browns Could Hire Pat Shurmur by End of Week

When searching for employment in today's job market, it helps to be well-connected.

It also helps when those connections are connected to the employer who is looking to fill the position as which you want to be employed.

That holds true whether you are looking for work as a construction worker or an NFL head coach.

With Mike Holmgren looking for a head coach to replace the terminated Eric Mangini, it looks like Pat Shurmur, with the help of his many connections, is the frontrunner for the Browns' head-coaching position.

For those Packers fans who think the same Shurmur should sound familiar, you are right. Pat Shurmur is a nephew of Fritz Shurmur, who was Green Bay's defensive coordinator during the Holmgren-led Packers' two-year reign as NFC champions back in the mid-1990s.

Pat Shurmur has also made connections beyond the luck of nepotism. He was an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Eagles under Andy Reid, who also served as an assistant coach to Holmgren while he was with Green Bay.

Shurmur went on to use what he learned from Reid, and what Reid learned from Holmgren, to mentor Sam Bradford as the St. Louis Rams' offensive coordinator. Using the West Coast offense utilized by teams coached by Holmgren and Reid, he helped lead Bradford guide the Rams to a six-win improvement in 2010.

Pat Shurmur has learned well from descendants of Holmgren. Now we may see what he can do while working directly under Holmgren.