What the loss of Brandon Mebane means for the Seahawks

Here is what defensive lineman Michael Bennett once said about defensive tackle Brandon Mebane:

“He’s the most important person to this defense. Everybody thinks it’s the Legion of Boom or me or Cliff (Avril), but it’s really Mebane.”

The specifics of that point could be argued, but the general sentiment was what really mattered. The players on Seattle’s defense held Mebane and his dirty work in high regard.

Now Mebane is gone, having signed with the San Diego Chargers on Wednesday. And his absence leaves the Seahawks with a 311-pound hole at defensive tackle.

What will the Seahawks to do replace Mebane?

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll once said there was nobody like Mebane, because Mebane was so laterally quick, so agile for his size, that he could not only clog the middle but also chase and pursue running backs down the line.

The Seahawks re-signed defensive tackle Ahtyba Rubin this season, although Rubin plays a different role than Mebane. Other than Rubin, the Seahawks bring back Jordan Hill and A.J. Francis at defensive tackle, so they’ll need to add depth at that spot and likely will need to add a veteran starter. In the past three years, the Seahawks have had luck finding cost-effective veterans along the interior of the defensive line: Tony McDaniel and Clinton McDonald in 2013, Rubin last season. They’ll likely look for similar options to replace Mebane.

The loss of Mebane stings because he’s unique

Mebane was the Seahawks’ longest-tenured player, and he not only knew the ins and outs of Carroll’s defense but also commanded respect in the locker room.

He wasn’t a loud presence, but he offered younger players advice on how to spend their offseason, how to maintain their health during a grueling season.

Receiver Doug Baldwin once said that he overworked himself in the offseason after his rookie season, which led to injuries during his second season. He then talked to Mebane, who gave him tips and advice on how to handle the offseason, which Baldwin has heeded ever since.

On the field, Mebane helped the Seahawks form one of the NFL’s toughest run defenses over the last few years. What teammates always praised him for was the way he made running backs cut back.

It’s a pretty simple idea: If a running back doesn’t have to change direction, he can run faster, he can run more powerfully, he can be more effective. But if he has to cut back or change directions behind the line, it makes his job harder. And Mebane’s job, as much as anything, was to make running backs cut behind the line.

“He just controls the line of scrimmage,” linebacker K.J. Wright once said. “Whenever you see him getting up the field and the running backs are cutting it back and the linebacker is making the tackle, it’s because of Mebane.”

Added former linebacker Malcolm Smith, “He’s just perfect for this defense. He’s perfect for any system like this where guys have to be big and run laterally. He’s one of our best players.”

The longest-tenured Seahawk now is…

Punter Jon Ryan. But that comes with a caveat: It’s entirely possible that Ryan isn’t back next season, either, because he’s also a free agent. If that’s the case, the longest-tenured Seahawks would be guys who arrived in 2010, Carroll’s first year: Earl Thomas, Russell Okung (also a free agent), Kam Chancellor and Clint Gresham.

It’s just a reminder how quickly things turn over in the NFL.