Defense has been a huge part of Alabama’s success so far this season, and the Crimson Tide has simply dominated opposing offenses at times to pull out victories even when some facets of the offense were not clicking. That’s included some huge plays from the Alabama secondary, a unit which took some heat a year ago.

At this point, the Tide is giving up nearly 30 fewer passing yards per game than it did last year and has intercepted its opponents 12 times already, matching the team total for all of last season and a mark that currently leads the SEC. The reason for the surge seems to be a nice mix of returning experience with an influx of young talent.

Preseason All-SEC pick Cyrus Jones was something of a boom or bust kind of player in 2014. He tied for the team lead with 3 interceptions and had 13 passes defended, but he was susceptible to giving up big plays, most notably in the College Football Playoff semifinal loss to Ohio State. Eddie Jackson, who had 1 pick and 6 passes defended last season, has come back with a vengeance in 2015.

Jackson is having as big a season as any defensive back in the country. To go along with 27 tackles, he’s also got 5 interceptions, two of them run back for touchdowns. Jackson’s big leap from sophomore to junior has been one of the major differences, but not the only one.

Redshirt freshman Marlon Humphrey and true freshman Minkah Fitzpatrick have both done more than their share to increase the production of the Alabama secondary in their first years on the field. Humphrey, the son of former Alabama star running back Bobby Humphrey, has been a solid cover man and ranks 8th on the team with 25 tackles. He also has an interception and has broken up 5 passes.

Fitzpatrick has been a big-play machine on both defense and special teams. He, along with Jackson, are likely to earn some postseason All-SEC honors if they keep it up. The New Jersey product is 5th on the team with 31 tackles, including a pair of sacks. He also has 2 interceptions, both returned for touchdowns, and has broken up 7 passes.

Perhaps the biggest difference for the Tide defensive backs this season is that, thanks largely to Jackson and Fitzpatrick, the big plays are more often going in Alabama’s favor than against it. Perhaps one reason is the versatility of the secondary.

Jones is a pure cornerback, but many of the other standouts in the unit have the flexibility to play in multiple spots. That allows the Tide to show a lot of different looks and make it difficult for opposing quarterbacks to read exactly what kind of coverage they are playing.

The emergence of Jackson and Fitzpatrick has also seemed to take a lot of pressure off Jones. With LSU coming up next, it’s going to be extra important for the secondary to continue to excel and allow the front seven to simply focus on stopping Leonard Fournette and the amazing LSU running game.