A veteran NFL scout reportedly believes that Alabama's defensive line is the best he has ever seen and projects three of them to go in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft, according to Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports.
A'Shawn Robinson, Jonathan Allen and Jarran Reed are the three defensive linemen that the NFL scout was speaking of, and the three of them are having huge seasons. Robinson and Allen are both juniors who have yet to declare for the draft, but they are seen as first round prospects. Robinson is listed at 6-foot-4, 312 pounds and has recorded seven tackles for losses, and he has three sacks on the season. Robinson is a great run stopper and can clog the middle making opposing offenses ineffective. Allen is more of a speed rusher who can stop the run, but he is very effective at getting after the quarterback. Allen played linebacker his freshman season at Alabama but has transitioned to the defensive line nicely the past couple seasons. Allen has 11.5 tackles for loss this season and nine sacks on opposing quarterbacks. While there is no guarantee that either Allen or Robinson will enter the draft, they will have a plenty of suitors interested in them.
Reed is a senior defensive lineman listed at 6-foot-4, 313 pounds, and has already garnered interested from the Houston Texans. Reed has 45 combined tackles this season and a sack. The Crimson Tide senior defensive lineman leads the group with tackles and is expected to be an impact player at the next level.
Alabama's defense is stacked from top to bottom, including linebacker Reggie Ragland, who has reportedly become a coveted prospect. The Crimson Tide defense has 38 sacks this season, and that is more than they have had in the past eight years. Alabama looks to be on course for a College Football Playoff berth and will need to win out to get there.
Allen is likely being watched by scouts closely this upcoming week, as teams will want to see what he produces after recording three sacks on Miss. St. quarterback Dak Prescott this past weekend. The Crimson Tide face Charleston Southern this Saturday, and expect the Alabama's defensive line to create havoc for the Buccaneers offense.
The combination of Robinson, Allen and Reed makes arguably the best defensive line in college football, and it's clearly reasonable to think that all three could be drafted in the first round in the 2016 NFL Draft.
