Alabama Football: Former Tide players ready for breakthrough NFL seasons

Alabama football has placed 77 players in the NFL since head coach Nick Saban took over the helm. Below are four former defensive players looking to make an impact during this upcoming NFL season.

Alabama football has produced defensive stalwarts such as three-time Pro Bowl linebacker C.J. Mosley, two-time Pro Bowl and All-Pro safety Landon Collins and one time Pro Bowler Ha Ha Clinton Dix.

Last season, Butkus Award winner Reuben Foster joined the San Fransisco 49ers and played lights out. He started in ten games and had 72 tackles. The linebacker received recognition from the league by being placed on the 2017 All-Rookie Team.

Lastly, strong safety Mark Barron entered the league in 2012 drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers seventh overall. He played two seasons with the Bucs and was traded to the St. Louis Rams. Prior Rams head coach Jeff Fisher turned Barron into a linebacker. Mark is a tackling machine. In 2016, the former safety registered 117 stops for the Los Angeles Rams debut season. Last season, he racked up 85 tackles in 14 games. Reinventing himself into a linebacker has made him a valuable teammate on head coach Sean McVay’s Rams.

Four players who can take a step forward this fall

Former Alabama Crimson Tide defensive line coach Bo Davis joins new head coach Matt Patricia’s staff which will spark a flame in old Tider A’Shawn Robinson. According to Athlon Sports, Robinson is the sixteenth best tackle in the NFL. The 23-year-old from Fort Worth, Texas managed 32 tackles and a half a sack last season.

Paul Pasqualoni takes the reins as defensive coordinator. Patricia spent 14 seasons under Bill Belichick in New England so the defense will demand versatility. The base defense will carry different looks as either a 3-4 or 4-3 depending on the matchup, down or distance.

Robinson thrived at Alabama playing in the same type of defense. The six-foot-four, 322-pound lineman is a load for any offensive lineman. As an Alabama football freshman, he made an immediate impact registering 38 tackles and 5.5 sacks. His junior season, A’ Shawn dropped weight, had an All American season and finished as an Outland Trophy finalist.

Robinson has immense potential to develop into an elite run stopper and spot pass rusher. Paired with the Lions 2018 fourth rounder Da’Shawn Hand and Davis, expect a resurgence of Robinson.

During Anderson’s rookie season with the Washington Redskins, he registered 11 tackles. Against the Los Angeles Chargers, he had a season-high five stops. The 2017 second round pick battled Preston Smith for significant playing time. However, it never materialized.

With a season under his belt expect him to have a more prominent role for the Redskins. Anderson possesses a high football IQ, is tough versus the run and can set the edge.

Anderson’s toughness and physicality will be needed to improve a Redskins defense that finished last in the league in rushing defense giving up 134.1 yards per game.

Playing in the NFL’s black and blue division, the Redskins need a turnaround season from Anderson. He has former Alabama football players Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne and Shaun Dion Hamilton to lean on in turning the defense into Tide North.

New Ravens defensive coordinator Don Martindale takes over a defense that finished 12th in total defense. The pass defense allowed 213.8 yards per game for ninth in the NFL. Ten-year veteran Brandon Carr’s first season in Baltimore resulted in 56 tackles, 11 passes deflections and four interceptions.

Standing at six-foot-one and 195 pounds, Humphrey possesses the tools of a lockdown corner. By season’s end expect Humphrey to supplant Carr as one of the starting cornerbacks.

Marlon is one of the most talented cornerbacks to play for the Ravens in a long time. He racked up 30 tackles with two interceptions playing nickel back. Playing with astute discipline, the young cornerback was one of the team’s best defenders late in the season.

Humphrey will face talented receivers such as AJ Green, Antonio Brown and Jarvis Landry in his divisional games. On December 2nd, he will face All-Pro wide receiver Julio Jones and former teammate Calvin Ridley, a duo that will frustrate a lot of cornerbacks this season.

One of the surprises of last year’s draft, Dalvin Tomlinson made his presence felt in the Big Apple. Drafted in the second round by New York, the giant defensive tackle started all 16 games and racked up 50 tackles for the second to last ranked NFL defense.

Tomlinson (317 pounds) paired with humongous Damon “Snacks” Harrison (348) and BJ Hill (311) are an opposing offensive lineman’s nightmare. He is stout at the point of attack. Dalvin can collapse the pocket and provide an inside pass rush. A former wrestler in high school, he doesn’t mind tussling with the offensive lineman. In the two games against the Dallas Cowboys talented offensive line, he made seven stops.

New defensive coordinator James Bettcher is implementing his defense which emphasizes an arduous rush on the quarterbacks. Therefore, expect to see Tomlinson in the opponent’s backfield more often this season with more sacks and tackles for losses.

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Alabama football produces players at a top-notch level while in Tuscaloosa. The four players listed above are going to leave their mark in the NFL.