Although winter is fast approaching, the already considerable heat being felt lately by the Seahawks was turned up a notch following a lopsided Week 11 loss made even more painful by a franchise-worst four-yard rushing performance.

A recent widely circulated Internet report suggested that Seahawks GM Tim Ruskell — who is in the final year of his contract and has been roasted on a daily basis by Seattle sports-talk radio commentators — could possibly be dismissed in the next couple of weeks.

But the way we hear it, it's not likely at all that the team would prematurely pull the plug on Ruskell, which would be a dramatic departure from the way it normally conducts business.

That said, inside sources believe the performance of the team the remainder of this season — with the schedule down the stretch considered to be a lot easier — will have a direct bearing on Ruskell's future in Seattle after this season.
 
Fueling the flames is the "300-pound gorilla," as one team insider described him — former Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren, whom many in Seattle are campaigning for to return to his old stomping grounds in a GM capacity.

Holmgren — who appears ready to re-enter the NFL fray and has been contacted by the Browns as a possible candidate to oversee football operations a la Bill Parcells in Miami — has openly acknowledged the possibility of a reunion with the Seahawks, but he has yet to publicly express a serious interest in returning to the team.

In the meantime, first-year head coach Jim Mora is having a hard time dealing with his team's serious problems, citing two particular areas of concern — the ground game, which couldn't have been more embarrassing in Minnesota, and the lack of a pass rush.

While injuries have once again been a huge problem on the offensive line, the unit was in its best shape of the year entering the game with the Vikings (with the obvious exception of veteran OLT Walter Jones) and still got manhandled by Minnesota's defensive front, particularly up the middle.

On the other side of the ball, opposing quarterbacks have routinely targeted areas vacated by Seattle blitzers. In addition, highly touted first-round SLB Aaron Curry appears to have hit a wall in the last month or so.

PFW has launched its brand-new NFL Draft Newsletter series, with the second issue being released the first week of December. Produced by PFW's player personnel department under the direction of Nolan Nawrocki, the series consists of four information-packed issues. For more info or to subscribe — click here for PDF e-pub or here for print format.