Sustaining dominance at the highest level of college football is a bit like keeping a house of cards standing tall in a light breeze — every time another card is carefully placed on the top of the last, more pressure is added. This same pressure is being felt by Alabama football this spring, with their 17-year run of pumping out at least one NFL Draft selection in first round now feeling more fragile than ever, after seeing many league talent evaluators warn the football world with their recent projections indicating that the Crimson Tide's historic run could be in serious jeopardy this April when pro football commissioner Rodger Goodell takes the podium.
The latest voice voicing this possible reality is NFL Network insider, Daniel Jeremiah, who released his updated Top 50 prospects list on Monday ahead of the start of this week's NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. In Jeremiah's list, only two of Alabama's 12 pro prospects made the cut.
Kadyn Proctor and Ty Simpson the only Top 50 prospects from Alabama, per Daniel Jeremiah
Those projections only include Crimson Tide offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor (29th) and quarterback Ty Simpson (40th).
If this is the case in the eyes of all 32 NFL front offices and things pan out exactly how Jeremiah predicts them to, then that would give Alabama their thinnest first-round representation in recent memory, potentially marking the program's lowest early-round draft footprint since the streak first began under College Football Hall of Famer Nick Saban's watch in 2009.
In my opinion, this would be a light jab to the sternum of many Crimson Tide fans who've bragged on the program's dominance for nearly two decades, as well as another indictment pf Kalen DeBoer in the minds of those who look for another reason to doubt the third-year Tide head coach. I say this because many have already doubted DeBoer since taking over for Saban in 2024, after the 7-time national championship coach was responsible for Alabama producing a program record of 49 first-round selections that streamed across the 2008 through 2024 NFL Draft cycles.
But in hindsight, I don't believe this scenario will be the case, due to the growing traction of Simpson's services on Sundays involving quarterback-needy franchises.
Aside from Jeremiah's projections, Simpson has still been in first round discussions, being labeled as the No. 2 QB to be taken off the board behind presumed No. 1 overall pick, Indiana Heisman winner and national champion QB Fernando Mendoza. Simpson's name has drawn consideration in the mid to late first-round to teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Rams, among others as possible suitors to take the redshirt junior passer on night one.
Of course, these are all early projections and predictions that could easily be changed for better or worse this week, with Simpson and Proctor set to solidify themselves in front of NFL GMs at the combine when participating in drills and meeting this week through March 2nd in Indy, along with Alabama's pro day looming in the coming weeks.
With good performances on these important days, I believe both Simpson and Proctor can edge their way into the first 32 picks this spring. If they can successfully do so, Alabama will continue to sit atop college football as the most consistent pipeline for NFL talent. If not, then DeBoer will have no choice but to start over from zero and form his own streak.