Alabama has its 11th practice of fall camp Tuesday evening, and Crimson Tide fans are growing concerned about its offense.
Jalen Milroe showed in the first scrimmage he has the ability to separate at quarterback.
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The redshirt sophomore had the best performance — per sources — but now he looks build off the outing. Alabama has a deep rotation of running backs and six to seven players that bring quality to the offensive line. Nick Saban is trying to build more depth up front, but he wants more consistency from wide receivers to catch passes. Drops are infuriating him and the Alabama fans, especially with the amount of marquee talent at the position. Saban has stressed the importance of being a receiver is to catch the football. Dropped passes played a role in Alabama’s two defeats in 2022, and people are want to know what’s causing it not to be corrected. Some have pointed fingers at the offense not being good enough; however, it appears to be much deeper than that.
Could it be that Tide has an attacking style defense again?
It is a thought some have not entertained, but Alabama’s offense is being challenged by an attacking defense in practice for the first time since 2017. Pete Golding, the Tide’s former defensive coordinator, had players sitting back and the offense dictated.
Kevin Steele has players being aggressive, dictating the flow of plays, making consistent plays, and playing with a physical edge.
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Terrion Arnold, a cornerback, said Steele’s voice ‘gets players in the mood’ to play football. Golding was good at explaining things, but his passion did not have players in the mood on the field. Defensive players take on the mindset of their coach, and we are seeing a different energy — the old Alabama football energy — with Steele in the building. These athletes understand their assignment, they are not lost, and they are playing fast. Steele and Saban will clean up the off sides issues on defense, but the bright side to it is at least the players are ready to attack. The championship formula under Saban stared with a no nonsense defense, and Steele has restored the mentality. Alabama had one leader — Will Anderson — on defense under Golding, but Steele is grooming several names to hold others accountable. The Tide has a good offense, it’s just that its defense is no joke anymore.
Alabama has a group that can return to leading the nation in all five major defensive categories: scoring defense, run defense, pass defense, total defense, and pass efficiency defense. The offense will be fine and Tommy Rees will have this group excelling in the season, but Alabama’s defense is taking it through some growing pains. The 2020 team for the Tide under Saban was the lone one where the offense led it to a national championship. Alabama has normally been a defensive-led program.
We are about to see a return to it.
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Stephen M. Smith is the managing editor and senior writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine. You can “like” him on Facebook or “follow” him on Twitter, via @CoachingMSmith.
