Alabama has now gone two years without a first-round pick in the NFL Draft after having five receivers selected in the first round over a three-year period from 2020 to 2022. In the 2020 Draft, teammates Henry Ruggs III and Jerry Jeudy ranked 12th and 15th, respectively. In the 2021 Draft, teammates Jaylen Waddle placed sixth and DeVonta Smith ranked tenth. Following his one-year stay in Tuscaloosa following his transfer from Ohio State, Jameson Williams was selected 12th overall in the 2022 Draft.
Alabama had three other first-round selections at wide receiver under Coach Nick Saban: Julio Jones (sixth overall in 2011), Amari Cooper (fourth overall in 2015), and Calvin Ridley (26th overall in 2018). In the third round of the 2024 Draft, Alabama selected Jermaine Burton from the Cincinnati Bengals, while no receivers were selected by the team in 2023. It might not be long before supporters of the Crimson Tide see another wideout chosen in the opening round. Three juniors, Kobe Prentice, Kendrick Law, and Washington transfer Germie Bernard, are expected to be the best pass-catchers going into the 2024 campaign. Although all three have skill, they would need to improve significantly if they were to be selected in the first round. But beyond them lies a youthful core whose ceiling is almost infinite.
Jalen Hale was on the verge of having a breakthrough sophomore season when he got hurt in the spring. Hale is expected to miss the whole of this season, but in 2025 he should return as a redshirt sophomore. Due to Hale’s injury, other players will receive more reps. Though Alabama comes in two true freshmen with first-round potential who might see the field early, the first beneficiaries may be redshirt freshman Cole Adams and junior Emmanuel Henderson.
At 6’5″ and extremely athletic, Caleb Odom is a converted tight end with some parallels to former Alabama tight end OJ Howard, who was selected in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Odom, who might be in the rotation in 2024, has a different skill set than any other receiver on the squad. Ryan Williams, a summer enlistee, might also end up being the most active player in the receiver room. Williams, who reclassified, will be young even for a true freshman, so there might be a sharp early learning curve. Nevertheless, he has a ton of playmaking potential and might play a role in autumn.
Enough receiver room to ensure that this group does not produce a first-round pick in the upcoming years. This inevitable outcome is only expected to accelerate given Coach Kalen DeBoer’s track record of developing receivers. Rome Odunze was selected by DeBoer as the third wide receiver off the board and a top-10 pick in the NFL only this year. Additionally, he was selected in the second round by Ja’Lynn Polk in the third round by Jalen McMillan. Under Coach DeBoer, expect Alabama to swiftly revert to becoming a receiver factory.
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