Nick Saban says only 1 Alabama player received a top-15 draft grade from NFL scouts

Alabama could have as many as 10 first-round picks in the 2020 NFL Draft. That’s highly unlikely, of course, but guys like QB Tua Tagovailoa, RB Najee Harris, WRs Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III and DeVonta Smith, OL Alex Leatherwood and Jedrick Wills Jr. and defenders Xavier McKinney, Trevon Diggs, Terrell Lewis, Raekwon Davis, Dylan Moses and Anfernee Jennings have all drawn first-round buzz in recent weeks.

However, some of those guys might return to school and some might not be Round 1 picks.

In fact, during his radio show on Monday evening, Saban said only Tagovailoa got a top-15 draft grade from NFL scouts:

The NFL teams Nick Saban has talked to only have one Alabama player with a top-15 draft grade, Tua Tagovailoa.

He discussed that with players while talking about the benefits of playing in the bowl game.

"I said (to the team) we only have one guy with that high of a grade."

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) December 30, 2019

It seems strange that a guy like Jeudy, who many consider a top-5 pick, didn’t get a similar grade. However, that’s what Saban said.

It seems likely that a number of those players mentioned above will go in the first round, but we’ll have to see who plays well in the bowl game, the NFL combine and beyond.