Originally published Monday, August 23, 2010 at 10:00 PM

5 factors that played a role

Factors that led to the breakdown of the Seattle Seahawks.

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Front-office tension

1 Tim Ruskell and Mike Holmgren's arranged marriage worked beautifully in 2005. But for three years after that the offense atrophied while Seattle added high-priced defensive players. The result was an aging and increasingly fragile team. When Holmgren began his 2008 swan song, it was awkward at best and dysfunctional at worst.

Loss of Steve Hutchinson

2 Seahawks' contractual brinkmanship of using the transition tag left the franchise vulnerable to losing Hutchinson and began the erosion of the offensive line. Ben Hamilton will be Seattle's sixth starting left guard since Hutchinson's departure.

Too many free agents

3 Signing defensive end Patrick Kerney and safeties Deon Grant and Brian Russell to shore up the defense paid immediate dividends but left Seattle vulnerable to age. Kerney wore down with injuries and retired. Russell and Grant also are gone.

Failure to draft stars

4 David Greene was the only outright bust in the first three rounds under Ruskell, but Lofa Tatupu was the only Pro Bowler. Seattle has found rank-and-file contributors and starters, but no breakout superstars. It picked more fullbacks (three) than tailbacks (one) in Ruskell's five years.

Trade for Deion Branch

5 When the Seahawks signed Branch to a six-year, $39 million contract and gave up a first-round draft pick, they hitched a chunk of their offensive future to a short wide receiver who never had 1,000 yards receiving in a season. Branch's season reception total declined in each of his first three seasons in Seattle.

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