Alabama Football continued to have success on day two of the 2023 NFL Draft. Five former Crimson Tide players heard their names called, bringing the total number of players drafted to eight. No other team in the country has more than five.
Former Alabama Football safety Brian Branch was chosen 45th overall in the second round by the Detroit Lions.
Branch joins a college teammate in running back Jahmyr Gibbs, who was selected by Detroit in the first round. By his junior season, Brian Branch had become one of the best defensive backs in college football, and was easily one of Alabama’s most impactful defenders.
Fortunately, the Crimson Tide secondary looks very promising heading into fall 2023. Branch will likely be replaced at the star by senior Malachi Moore, with whom he has a lot of similarities. The two came to Tuscaloosa together in the class of 2020, and have rotated at the position since then.
Moore started as a freshman before Branch took over the primary responsibilities of the job the last two years. Still, Malachi Moore continued to get valuable playing time, and he is more than qualified to handle the position in 2023. Alabama Football has high expectations of Moore this season.
Former Alabama Football offensive lineman Tyler Steen was selected 65th overall in the third round by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Steen was only in Tuscaloosa for one season after transferring from Vanderbilt, but was one of the SEC’s most experienced linemen. He did well protecting Bryce Young’s blind side as the left tackle in 2022, and is vacating one of the most important positions on the field.
Redshirt freshman Elijah Pritchett got the start at left tackle on A-Day, but sometimes looked like he was still adjusting to the speed of the game. Pritchett missed the majority of last season with an injury before ultimately taking the redshirt.
Some have pushed for true freshman Kadyn Proctor, a 5-star recruit, to move from guard to left tackle. It’s also interesting that junior JC Latham, one of the best offensive linemen in college football at right tackle, has not been moved to the blind side. There are still a lot of moving pieces, so it will be interesting to see how this talented but young offensive line pans out.
Former Alabama Football defensive lineman Byron Young was taken 70th overall in the third round by the Las Vegas Raiders.
Young enjoyed a gradual progression during his four years on campus, and became one of the SEC’s top defensive linemen as a senior.
The Crimson Tide should be strong at defensive end once again in 2023, led by seniors Justin Eboigbe and Tim Smith. Both of these players are primed for breakout seasons, and Bama will get quality depth from Jah-Marien Latham, Jamil Burroughs, and Damon Payne.
Former Alabama Football safety Jordan Battle was chosen 95th overall in the third round by the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Tide has to replace both starting safeties, and Battle was essentially a four-year starter on the back end. All indications point to the new safeties being pretty good.
Kristian Story is a senior who has waited his turn, and Caleb Downs could be the most college-ready freshman in the country.
There could be some growing pains with a pair of first-year starters, but Alabama will arguably be more talented at safety.
Former Alabama Football tight end Cameron Latu went 101st overall in the third round by the San Francisco 49ers.
Latu was a converted outside linebacker who became a pretty good tight end, catching 12 touchdown passes over two seasons as a starter. Alabama brought in Maryland transfer CJ Dippre, who looks like a direct replacement for Latu.
Both players are big-bodied, relatively athletic pass catchers that are also serviceable blockers. Going deeper into the room, junior Robbie Ouzts is probably the best blocker on the team at this position. Second-year players Amari Niblack and Danny Lewis Jr. are still progressing and could provide athletic options in the passing game.
The Crimson Tide will likely continue to see players come off the board throughout day three. Even in a down year respective to program standards, Alabama Football is producing more NFL players than anybody else in college football.