It’s no secret that Nick Saban has had unprecedented success at Alabama. He’s a great motivator and leader of men, knows how to assemble a staff of coaches who enhance his strengths, can adapt and adjust as well as anyone in football, and cares deeply about setting young men up for success in the future (and yeah – he has a notorious mean streak).
But, although we almost always immediately think about the titles when we talk about Saban, he has quietly put together quite the accomplishment. With the selection of Evan Neal to the New York Giants, Saban has now sent a player to the NFL in the first round for 14 consecutive years.
Take a look at this list of picks:
- 2009: Andre Smith (9)
- 2010: Rolando McClain (10)
- 2011: Marcell Dareus (3)
- 2012: Trent Richardson (3)
- 2013: Dee Milliner (9)
- 2014: C.J. Mosley (17)
- 2015: Amari Cooper (4)
- 2016: Ryan Kelly (18)
- 2017: Marlon Humphrey (16)
- 2018: Minkah Fitzpatrick (11)
- 2019: Quinnen Williams (3)
- 2020: Tua Tagovailoa (5)
- 2021: Jaylen Waddle (6)
- 2022: Evan Neal (7)
Wow. It’s a huge boost in recruiting when you can look a kid in the eyes, say “you have a hell of a shot at going in the first round,” absolutely mean it, and have the pedigree to back it up. Now, I’ll admit – not all of these guys pan out. But, there’s a hell of a lot of talent on that list coming out of Alabama. Not only do they have a guy in the first round every year for the last 14 years, the average draft position in the first round is 7.9.
As for this particular pick, I love it. The Giants are clearly starting to build out in the trenches. Neal brings power and versatility to the offensive line. If this franchise is sold on Andrew Thomas as its left tackle, then Neal can play the right tackle position and excel at it. He has that on his resumé. To Thomas’ credit, he started to put things together later in the season and showed flashes of the player they drafted him to be. But, if that doesn’t happen, Neal serves as an excellent contingency plan to slot in and be the left tackle of the future for this franchise. It was a no-brainer, in my opinion.
My blurb on Neal from my NFL Draft big board, available exclusively on the SoBros Patreon: “Neal is ridiculous – guys that big should not look that slim. I mean, based on who I’ve watched so far, this draft class looks like Hamilton and Neal and then everybody else to me. Neal is big and powerful, capable of absolutely dominating his opponent and blowing open a running lane. There’s some work to do with his response to lateral movement in pass protection, but overall, Neal looks like a lock to be a cornerstone tackle in the NFL.“
Giants fans…two minutes and twenty seconds (ish) of Alabama OT Evan Neal pic.twitter.com/xG8urJJVbM
— Nick Falato (@nickfalato) April 29, 2022
If you haven’t already, be sure to subscribe to The Unofficial Titans Podcast on Apple Podcasts, follow us on Spotify, or wherever you take in your podcasts!
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
Check out the SoBros Shop. Become a Patron. Give us money for no reason. Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter @SoBrosNetwork. Watch on YouTube.
