Former Seahawks defensive tackle Brandon Mebane is approaching his Chargers tenure with a fan's enthusiasm.
In fact, he thinks San Diego has more talent on defense than the Seahawks.
"Offense, defense, there's so much talent on this team," Mebane, 31, told the Union Tribune. "It's unreal. I was telling guys, there's more talent on this defense than in Seattle. If you look at the draft, you've got four first-round draft picks. You've got five second-round draft picks, all total on defense. In Seattle, we only had two first-rounders and one second-rounder. Everybody else was pretty much down in the draft or undrafted.
"If we put it together and just play together and work on our skill, I think the sky is the limit for this defense. It's amazing. Based on the skill and the talent level, it's there. All we have to do is believe in each other and play together. Man, it's unreal."
The fatal flaw in Mebane's argument, of course, is that the low-round picks are precisely what drive Seattle's defense. As we've noted in the past, Seahawks general manager John Schneider does not care about draft position. In fact, in a brochure he sends out to undrafted free agents, he lauds the fact that Seattle will cut their draft picks if a more talented prospect comes along. Competition and constant churning create an endless game of King of the Hill in Seattle's locker room. Nobody can rest on their laurels.
If Mebane is talking about investment alone, he's not wrong. Seven of the team's 11 projected defensive starters (Joey Bosa, Corey Liuget, Jeremiah Attaochu, Manti Te'o, Denzel Perryman, Melvin Ingram and Jason Verrett) were either first- or second-round picks.
It can give off the appearance that something is brewing in San Diego, which can justify some of Mebane's feelings. Defensive coordinator John Pagano weathered the hot seat last year and a nearly 25-point-per game average to return this season with a new mission. He might also have the best pure pass rushing prospect San Diego has drafted in years in Bosa. We cannot rule out the possibility that everything finally comes together.
Are they more talented than Seattle? No. If any general manager in football did a re-draft, Kam Chancellor, Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman and Bobby Wagner would have been first-round picks as well. But that is also part of what made them great in the first place.
