Monday Mailbag: Top receivers, who benefits from Turner’s absence, early PT for freshmen and more

So we’ve started a weekly Alabama mailbag here at BamaInsider.

Below, I’ve picked a few questions to answer from some of our subscribers over on the Talk of Champions message board. I’ll try to be as in-depth with my responses as possible, but also keep in mind that Jimmy Stein and I will be expanding on some of these questions during The Bama On3 Show, which is now a weekly show.

Remember … if you want to remain anonymous, that’s totally fine. If you want your name shared so everyone can see who’s behind these fantastic questions, that’s also encouraged. Whatever makes you feel comfortable. This mailbag is for you, after all. Alright, let’s begin.

** Apologies for the late mailbag this week. Food poisoning isn’t fun. **

Top 3 wideouts this season? – D_slidin

I can probably name you the top six receivers easier than I can the top three.

Naturally, Ja’Corey Brooks and Jermaine Burton should be in the conversation. Then, you’ve got the three rising sophomores in Isaiah Bond, Kobe Prentice and Kendrick Law. It’s difficult to see a scenario where those three aren’t involved to some degree. From there, you’ve also got to assume Malik Benson will be in the mix somewhere.

You’re wanting to know the top three among those though. That’s more difficult to narrow down, but I’ll at least try to work my way through it.

I know it’s really early, but I have to think Benson’s game-breaking ability is going to make him a focal point of the offense. It might not be immediately, but by the time conference play rolls around at the end of the September, I think it’s a strong possibility the former JUCO standout is up there. From here, things get even more complicated.

Look, everyone knows I’m a big fan of Bond.

Even before his two-catch, 76-yard performance against Arkansas, he was already showing flashes of being an impact player. With so many other mouths to feed at his position, he never got a chance to emerge as a consistent option, but when he was given the chance to make a play, he made it more times than not.

If he makes strides this spring (which I expect), then I’ll feel good about throwing him in there.

But on the other side, I’m having a hard time imagining Brooks and Burton falling out of the top three. Maybe one of them, but surely not both. How about this: I’ll narrow it down to a top-4 for you with Benson, Bond, Brooks and Burton. Then, I’ll predict Prentice and Law are both involved as well. I know some fans would love to see Shazz Preston or Jalen Hale get into the mix, but they have an uphill battle in 2023.

What will we notice different on defense? – BamaLou

We’ve talked about this before, but I think you’ll see a little less of the rabbits package with two defensive linemen and two outside linebackers as Alabama’s defensive front. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure you’ll still see plenty of rabbits, but it won’t be the clear-cut, primary front like we saw with Will Anderson Jr. and Turner in 2022.

Some of that’s dependent on the style of offense Alabama is playing against though.

For example, we saw more heavy looks against offenses with a strong rushing attack. Games such as Texas, Auburn and Kansas State are perfect examples. Granted, there were still plenty of rabbit looks in those contests, but we saw more balance. Then in other games (LSU, for example), you saw a much higher percentage of the lighter packages — rabbits, Cheetah, etc.

I’m sure that will continue to be the case in 2023, but it felt like the default fell more on the rabbit looks (two defensive linemen, two outside linebackers) last year. This season, I wouldn’t be surprised if the scripts were flipped with the default falling more on the heavier side of things (three defensive linemen, one outside linebacker).

One thing we saw from Kevin Steele during his time at Auburn were a lot of heavy fronts.

Marlon Davidson was a starter for the Tigers at defensive end, but at 6-3, 280+ pounds, he was built more like an interior lineman than an edge. Only 16% of his 2,469 career snaps came from inside though. As I said, Steele liked him lined up over or outside the tackle. Here’s a look at Auburn’s entire defensive line rotation in 2019:

Derrick Brown (6-5, 318) — 651 snaps (68.3%)Big Kat Bryant (6-5, 247) — 648 (68%)Marlon Davidson (6-3, 284) — 596 (62.5%)Tyrone Truesdell (6-2, 310) — 513 (53.8%)Nick Coe (6-5, 291) — 381 (40%)Derrick Hall (6-3, 230) — 198 (20.8%)Daquan Newkirk (6-3, 306) –196 (20.6%)T.D. Moultry (6-2, 243) — 183 (19.2%)Coynis Miller Jr. (6-2, 312) — 145 (15.2%)

As you can see, the only true edge who even cracked 25% of Auburn’s defensive snaps that year was Bryant. You saw other true edges such as Hall and Moultry more situationally, but this was a front built predominantly on size. For the most part, the extra mass helped the Tigers be more effective against the run (top 25).

I don’t think Alabama leans that much on heavier looks though.

Nowadays, college football is a passing league. You still need to be able to pin your ears back and create pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but we also can’t ignore that Alabama struggled to stop the run in 2022. The Crimson Tide ranked No. 35 in the nation, allowing 130.38 yards per game. In the two previous seasons, they checked in at No. 4 (86.00) and No. 17 (113.08).

Yes, I believe there will be more of an emphasis on forcing offenses to be one-dimensional again. I also think the style of Alabama’s new offense will help make the defense more effective in whatever it chooses to do though. In other words, expect to see more complementary styles between the two sides.

Who do you see getting most of the reps with Dallas Turner limited this Spring? – bamabubba

Let me start by reiterating how much I wish Keon Keeley was already on campus. I wouldn’t have automatically deemed him the biggest beneficiary of Dallas Turner missing time this spring, but I do think he would’ve been one of the most likely candidates. There are others who stand to benefit, however.

In the early stages of spring, I can see Quandarrius Robinson getting the most usage from Turner’s absence. He’s now a fourth-year senior who did see a little bit of time with the first-team defense down the stretch last season. Naturally, that makes the most sense, but I also believe there’s room for five-star freshman Qua Russaw to get some early run.

I want you to think about what Turner provides the defense.

Last year, Anderson was listed at 243 pounds on the roster, but it was reported prior to the season that he was closer to 250. That was confirmed at the NFL Scouting Combine earlier this month when the star pass rusher showed up at 253 pounds. Then, you’ve got the guy who’s projected to take over his Jack role in Chris Braswell. He’s now checking in at a whopping 255.

Turner, on the other hand, only went from 240 to 242.

I think that might’ve been by design, too. Last season, Anderson and Braswell dropped into coverage 51 times combined. Even taking out the Mississippi State game that saw Turner drop 20 times while playing a hybrid role (OLB and ILB), he still had 72 drops in Alabama’s other 12 other games. That’s way more than the other two put together.

Now, Russaw doesn’t have a lot of experience dropping into coverage.

In high school, he was either on the line of scrimmage as an edge defender or was immediately coming downhill as an off-ball LB to stop the run, contain the QB or get after the QB. With that said, he’s already more comfortable playing in space than most edge guys due to his experience playing off the ball. In some ways, that makes similar to Turner.

In fact, I think you can ask a lot of the same things from Russaw that you ask of Turner.

At 6-4, Turner brings a lot more length to the position, but if Alabama likes the Montgomery (Ala.) Carver product as an edge, then he can have similar usage. Maybe not in heavy fronts where he’d be the lone outside linebacker, but moreso in rabbits looks as a complementary edge presence who can also play off the ball in the apex.

I still believe his best long-term fit is at off-ball linebacker though.

Outside of Caleb Downs, which frosh could you see playing early? Is the early playing time due to shear talent or lack of quality depth at the position? Thanks! – RadLad

When I look at Alabama’s roster, I don’t see a position depleted enough where I think “oh man, they’re going to need early contributions from a youngster here.” The transfer portal helps prevent that from being an issue, but avoiding such a problem mostly comes down to Nick Saban and company always recruiting well and planning ahead as far as replacement options.

In other words, the players who make a first-year impact will continue to be the guys who are ready to take a position from someone. It’s not that Alabama isn’t necessarily good enough somewhere; it’s that guy are so good that you can’t justify keep them off the field (i.e., Jaheim Oatis and Tyler Booker). Obviously, Downs falls into that category.

He isn’t the only one though. To me, Kadyn Proctor feels like another Booker.

Now, we have to keep in mind that a lot of Booker’s early playing time wasn’t all that meaningful. Yes, he saw 20 snaps against Utah State in the season opener, but the main rotation at guard was between Kendall Randolph, Emil Ekiyor Jr. and Javion Cohen. Then in Week 2 against Texas, Booker only played one snap the entire game.

By Week 3, Alabama had settled into Ekiyor and Cohen being its two starters. And like in 2021, the coaching staff probably would’ve been fine with it exclusively being those two. But by that point, Booker was flashing enough where it would’ve been impossible to keep him off the field. Over nine of the next 10 games, he averaged almost 40 snaps.

Then, he took over as the starter in the Sugar Bowl when Cohen left for Miami.

As another five-star lineman with tremendous talent and a good work ethic, I can see Proctor having an early role as well. In fact, I even think a starting job could be on the table sooner rather than later. It might not come at offensive tackle with JC Latham and Elijah Pritchett already manning those two spots, but guard remains a very real possibility.

Some of it will depend on how guys such as Darrian Dalcourt, Terrence Ferguson II and Jaeden Roberts are progressing. But at the same time, it might not matter if Proctor is living up to the hype, which we all fully expect. From there, predicting which freshmen get early playing time becomes a little more difficult.

I certainly think James Smith will be involved in Alabama’s defensive line rotation early on. I also believe Russaw and even running back Justice Haynes are good enough to see meaningful action in Year 1. How much action? Well, that’s hard to say, but we’re already hearing good things about all these guys. I also wouldn’t rule out Keeley fighting his way onto the field once he’s on campus.

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