Alabama Football News

Former NFL offensive lineman says Alabama OL looks night and day different from last season after watching 2 hours of practice

by
Justin Smith
August 17, 2026

Alabama OL Michael Carroll (#64) lined up during the 2025 season.

Former NFL offensive lineman and CBS Sports’ college football analyst Aaron Taylor is high on Alabama football’s offensive line after watching two hours of practice on Monday.

Taylor started at left guard for the Green Bay Packers when they won a Super Bowl in 1994, and he walked away from watching the Tide’s offensive line practice Monday feeling juiced up by Alabama’s group upfront.

“Now we all know the talk all offseason is about whether or not Kalen DeBoer can fill Nick Saban’s shoes or who’s going to start at quarterback,” Taylor said in a video posted to X. “Well, I’m here to tell you it’s going to be the offensive line that shuts up and ends all that talk. Alabama will be able to run the football this year, full stop. That’s the headline. The improvements year over year for what I saw in this unit after just watching them live for 2 hours with my own eyes is night and day. When they got to the second level, they didn’t just go up and try to settle into the linebacker. They were running through those boys. When it came to one-on-ones, they dominated that drill all across the board through the 2-deep offensive line, using their hands, punching, trusting their technique, and starting the fight.”

👀 Is Kalen DeBoer ready to bring @Alabamafbl back to the top?@AaronTaylorcfb spent the day at Bama’s Fall Camp, and we learned it’s going to come down to the o-line. pic.twitter.com/siv00d6Yeo

— Joe Moore Award (@JoeMooreAward) August 17, 2026

Alabama football has completely re-built its offensive line. The Crimson Tide is projected to start four offensive lineman who have never started for Alabama this fall.

Tide fans will get an opportunity to see the 2026 version of Alabama on Sept. 5 when they take on East Carolina.

Justin Smith( Managing Editor, Director of Recruiting )

Justin Smith is the Managing Editor and Lead Writer for Touchdown Alabama Magazine with over 10 years of writing experience & expertise. Smith has consistently delivered high quality, extensively researched information on the University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide football team that fans can trust. Smith is official credentialed media with the University of Alabama under Touchdown Alabama Magazine. He is also the Director of Recruiting for Touchdown Enterprises, specializing in scouting and analyzing high school recruits around the nation, specifically focusing on recruits within the state of Alabama.