In 2017, the Alabama Crimson Tide had one of the deepest and most talented defensive backfields in the country.

There were six upperclassmen who were not only immensely talented, but highly experienced, with a couple of multi-year starters. It’s somewhat rare for a Nick Saban secondary to feature that many upperclassmen at one time. The result was a defense that was No. 6 nationally in passing yards allowed per game (165.7) and No. 1 nationally in total yards allowed per game (260.4) and points per game (11.9).

Predictably, all six (Minkah Fitzpatrick, Ronnie Harrison, Levi Wallace, Anthony Averett, Tony Brown and Hootie Jones) are now in the NFL, meaning the Alabama secondary, which usually features at least a few vets to go with the 5-star freshmen and sophomores sprinkled in, is remarkably inexperienced.

Just 5 QBs have thrown for 400 yards against Nick Saban's Alabama defense. Deshaun Watson twice, Johnny Manziel, Nick Marshall, Chad Kelly and Austin Allen.

Don’t get me wrong: There’s no shortage of talent. No, sir, this is Alabama, where 5-stars replace 5-stars and the guys replacing All-Americans themselves turn into All-Americans. But you can’t teach game experience, and as of right now, that’s the one thing the Alabama defensive backfield is lacking.

So, if anyone were to beat Alabama this year, it would likely be through the air, exploiting an inexperienced secondary still trying to mesh together. Typically, at least in Alabama’s 8 losses of the past 6 years, when they lost, they’ve been beaten by explosive aerial attacks that can make big plays downfield and don’t turn the ball over.

The crop of SEC QBs this year is as good as it has been in a long, long time. Here are the 4 QBs who are capable of beating Alabama’s secondary in 2018.

Drew Lock, Mizzou

Lock is the darling of the scouting community, being hailed as a potential No. 1 overall pick for the 2019 NFL Draft after a junior season of 2017 in which he set an SEC record for TD passes in a season with 44. It’s easy to see why scouts like him too, considering his size and skill set. He’s a very good athlete (multiple legitimate D-1 basketball offers coming out of high school) with a good frame (6-4, 225) and a terrific arm. He does a nice job generating velocity to all three levels and has a quick release and a compact delivery. He needs to improve his accuracy, however, after completing just 56 percent of his passes the past two years. Still, the natural skills are undeniable.

I’d be more than a little surprised if Mizzou actually beats Alabama, because I don’t see how the Tigers will be able to stop Alabama on offense, but Lock could put up some big numbers against the Alabama secondary. Especially when you remember some of the pieces on offense the Tigers have with WR Emanuel Hall (24.8 yards per reception last year), TE Albert Okwuegbunam (11 TDs in ’17), 2 good RBs in Larry Rountree and Damarea Crockett and an underrated offensive line.

Jordan Ta’amu, Ole Miss

The Rebels are the only team to beat Alabama twice in the past 4 years, and each time they won, they not only won the turnover battle, but they made big plays downfield through the air. In the two wins over the Tide in 2014 and ’15, the Rebels threw a combined 6 TD passes with no INTs to big, physical targets like Laquon Treadwell (6-2), Evan Engram (6-3), Cody Core (6-3) and Quincy Adeboyejo (6-3). I can’t say Ta’amu is more talented than Chad Kelly, but I do think he’s better than Bo Wallace was, and he has the best receiving corps in the country at his disposal.

Ta’amu will certainly be taking plenty of shots downfield knowing he can just toss it up and more often than not his receivers will come down with it considering their size. The Alabama secondary actually has some decent length, but even they can’t match the size of WRs A.J. Brown (6-1, 230), D.K. Metcalf (6-4, 230) and DaMarkus Lodge (6-2, 205), along with TE Dawson Knox (6-4, 260).

Ta’amu flashed his natural arm talent down the stretch last year, and you have to think he’ll be even better after a full offseason of improving his timing with the receivers. Alabama will still win this game (because Ole Miss has no defense), but they have a chance to put up some points, especially since they catch the Alabama secondary early in the season.

Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State

Fitzgerald has been a production machine the past two years, throwing for a combined 4,205 yards with 36 TDs, while also adding another 2,359 yards on the ground with 30 TDs. He certainly regressed as a passer last year – passing yards and TDs went down from 2016, turnovers went up – though some of that was due to a thin and injury riddled receiving corps. Despite that, he and State gave the Tide a run for their money last year in Starkville and actually carried a lead into the fourth quarter before giving up a game-winning TD pass with 31 seconds remaining.

Fitzgerald should show improvement as a passer this year under new HC and renown QB guru Joe Moorhead, the architect of the high-flying Penn State offense of the past 2 years. He has the size (6-5, 230), athleticism and arm strength to be an NFL QB, but needs someone like Moorhead to clean up his mechanics. The receiving corps is also expected to be vastly improved and they return both RBs and 4 starters up front. State is one of the very few teams in the SEC with a somewhat realistic chance at beating Alabama this year, but to do so they’ll need Fitzgerald to play the game of his life.

Jarrett Stidham, Auburn

I mean, obviously, right? Of course Stidham is capable of beating Alabama’s secondary, because he already has, beating Alabama 26-14 last year. And the secondary he beat was that ridiculous group of vets I was talking about at the start of the piece. Stidham is a very gifted QB, the best in the SEC in my opinion who also could be in the running to be the first player picked next spring. There was arguably no better QB in the conference in the second half of the 2017 regular season, showing poise in the pocket, excellent arm strength, timing and touch, with the ability to extend plays outside of the pocket.

He’ll also be throwing to a solid group of receivers led by Ryan Davis, who set a school record with 84 receptions last year, to go along with deep ball specialist Darius Slayton, who averaged more than 22 yards per reception last year.

Auburn has enough talent to beat Alabama this year, but I obviously still give the edge to Alabama because they have a deeper roster and the best college football coach in history on their sidelines.

We must also remember, that while the Alabama secondary is inexperienced now, it won’t be when these two teams square off in late November. They’ll have had a full season to take their lumps and let the game slow down for them before the Iron Bowl.