Brandon Mebane - defensive tackle
No one would argue that Brandon Mebane has been anything but a standout for Seattle. Since being drafted in the third round of the 2007 draft, he has been a starter and leader along the defensive line.
Unfortunately, it hasn't amounted to a great deal of team success. In his two seasons with the Seahawks, the rush defense has ranked 12th and 18th in yards allowed in 2007 and 2008 respectively.
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Now, this could hardly be attributed to Mebane. But Seattle's poor run defense in recent years, even when the defense as a whole was good, has often been due to a lack of a consistently dominant inside presence.
In 2009, Mebane needs to step up and be that dominant presence.
Historically speaking
In the last 10 seasons, the Seahawks have finished in the top 10 in opposing yards per attempt, perhaps the most telling stat for a rush defense, only twice.
By far their best season in this regard came in 2005 when Seattle finished fifth, along with the second-best ranking in opposing rush touchdowns and the fifth-best in rush yards allowed.
That year was a bright spot amongst season after season of mediocrity.
It's no surprise that was the year Seattle went to the Super Bowl and even less of a surprise that it was the healthiest and most productive season for former first-round defensive tackle Marcus Tubbs.
Building from the ground up
Look at great defense after great defense, and you'll consistently see the same component: a dominant defensive tackle.
Seattle once had one in Tubbs, but he couldn't stay healthy. Now it's Mebane's turn.
He'll certainly need the help of those around him. But for Seattle to move into elite territory, which they have the talent to do, then Mebane will need to be that irresistible force at the center.
He needs to gobble up tacklers at the point of attack to free the linebackers. He needs to knife up the middle to force the quarterback out of the pocket. Put simply, he needs to play like an All Pro.
Now, this isn't crucial to Seattle's success, hence Mebane's appearance last on the list. But if Mebane can make that leap forward in ability then there's no telling how good Seattle's defense can be. And that's pretty exciting.
Number 1 - Jim L. Mora
Number 2 - Chris Spencer
Number 3 - Julius Jones
Number 4 - Gus Bradley
Number 5 - Brian Russell
Number 6 - Lawrence Jackson
Number 7 - Deon Butler
Number 8 - Ken Lucas
Number 9 - Leroy Hill
Reach Jeff Richards at nextseasonsports@gmail.com
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