SEATTLE -- The Seattle Seahawks are considered one of the NFL's biggest disappointment this season. Matt Hasselbeck believes they're headed in the right direction.
Seattle lost to the NFC West rival St. Louis Rams 27-20 on Saturday in the wild-card round of the playoffs, ending an up-and-down season that opened with talk of a possible Super Bowl run.
"This has been a difficult season for all kinds of reasons," Hasselbeck said.
Hasselbeck's anguish was evident after his fourth-down pass went through Bobby Engram's hands in the end zone from the 5-yard line. Had he caught it, the Seahawks would have forced overtime.
"We were real close to getting it done," Hasselbeck said. "I could have helped us get it done. We came up short again."
The Seahawks head into the offseason with 16 players -- nine starters -- as unrestricted free agents, including Hasselbeck at quarterback, tackle Walter Jones and running back Shaun Alexander.
Also on the list are cornerback Ken Lucas, defensive end Chike Okeafor, tight end Itula Mili, center Robbie Tobeck, guard Chris Gray and special teams standout Alex Bannister.
"It feels like a funeral to me because this might be the last time playing with a lot of these guys," said Lucas, who had a rough day. "I wanted to keep going into the playoffs. It just really hurts."
Seattle has about $30 million in cap space, but it's a stretch to think everyone will return.
"It will be our hope and our effort to keep our core together the best way we can," said coach Mike Holmgren, who led Green Bay to a Super Bowl title but is 0-3 in the playoffs during his six seasons in Seattle.
There were rumblings during the season that Holmgren might be on his way out, though he's maintained he hopes to finish his career with the Seahawks. His six-year record is 50-49.
Holmgren has two years remaining on the $32 million contract he signed in 1999. He sounded like he expects to stick around.
"Our challenge as a football organization is to make every attempt to keep our young players on defense with us and continue to coach and develop them," Holmgren said. "It was a very young group out there."