How many Alabama football players could be 2026 NFL draft picks? A way-too-early look

The 2025 NFL draft is complete, and even after Alabama football’s worst season since 2007, the program still took center stage.

Alabama offensive lineman Tyler Booker (No. 12 Dallas Cowboys) extended a streak to 17 straight years where at least one Crimson Tide player was selected as a first-round pick. Booker and linebacker Jihaad Campbell (No. 31 Philadelphia Eagles) extended a streak to nine straight years where multiple Crimson Tide players were selected as first-round picks.

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Quarterback Jalen Milroe (No. 92 Seattle Seahawks), safety Malachi Moore (No. 130 New York Jets), linebacker Que Robinson (No. 134 Denver Broncos), tight end Robbie Ouzts (No. 175 Seattle Seahawks) and defensive lineman Tim Smith (No. 190 Indianapolis Colts) were also selected.

Alabama’s attention has been firmly on its upcoming 2025 season, one that could include its fair share of potential 2026 NFL draft picks, including a few that could end up continuing Alabama’s string of first-round selections.

Who could be next in line? Here are a few Alabama players who could be selected in the NFL draft next year:

LT Overton; Alabama football defensive end

LT Overton very well could have been a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft off his 6-foot-5, 280-pound frame and potential alone. But with a defense-wide emphasis on turning quarterback hurries and pressures into sacks and tackles-for-loss, an emphasis of which Overton is at the center, the second-year Texas A&M transfer has a chance to vault himself onto the top of 2026 draft boards during his senior season.

Kadyn Proctor; Alabama left tackle

A former five-star out of Des Moines, Iowa, Kadyn Proctor showed vast improvement from his freshman season at Alabama to his sophomore year, allowing three sacks, three hits, eight hurries and 14 pressures across 639 snaps in 2024, per Pro Football Focus, to earn second-team All-SEC honors. Another step from the 6-foot-7, 360-pound left tackle could put him in the conversation as one of the top offensive linemen in the 2026 draft class after his junior year.

Domani Jackson; Alabama cornerback

Domani Jackson shined in his first year with the Crimson Tide with 52 tackles, two interceptions and seven pass deflections. And according to PFF, as the most targeted Crimson Tide cornerback, Jackson allowed one touchdown. Another season of development with Zabien Brown on the other side could make Jackson a contender as one of the top cornerbacks nationally heading into the 2026 draft.

Deontae Lawson; Alabama linebacker

Deontae Lawson very well could have been a 2025 NFL draft pick after his third-team All-SEC season, where he had 76 tackles and 6.5 tackles-for-loss. After an ACL injury cut Lawson’s season short, the redshirt senior decided to return in 2025 to lead a defense in its second year with Kane Wommack’s scheme, something that has the chance to boost Lawson’s draft stock immensely.

Germie Bernard; Alabama wide receiver

One season with Alabama turned Germie Bernard into a wide receiver weapon, leading the Crimson Tide with 50 receptions and finishing as one of two Alabama wide receivers with multiple touchdown receptions and at least 260 receiving yards. As the Alabama wide receiver room fills out with the return of Ryan Williams and the addition of Isaiah Horton — and adds a familiar face to the Washington transfer in offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb — Bernard is expected to continue as a focal point in the passing game, something that should get him drafted.

Keon Sabb; Alabama safety

Alabama got a taste of what Keon Sabb could be, recording 39 tackles, two interceptions and four pass deflections in seven games, roaming the defensive backfield as a representative of Wommack’s “Swarm” mentality. Coming back from a lower-body injury that kept him out for the second half of 2024, Sabb is set to return to start alongside Bray Hubbard and could very well start from where he left off.

Parker Brailsford; Alabama center

In his first season at Alabama, Parker Brailsford returned to what he had been at Washington the season before, allowing zero sacks, one hit, six hurries and seven pressures across 775 snaps. Heading into 2025, Brailsford is considered the veteran presence on the Crimson Tide’s line, one that includes returners in Proctor and right guard Jaeden Roberts. If Brailsford continues to progress, he could become the top center prospect available in the 2026 draft.

Isaiah Horton; Alabama wide receiver

Horton has not played a snap for Alabama yet, joining the Crimson Tide after three seasons at Miami. But with his 6-foot-4, 209-pound frame, with his track record with quarterback Ty Simpson and with the way players and coaches are talking about him, Horton’s expectations are sky high. And if those expectations come to fruition, it may be difficult for the Crimson Tide to keep Horton for more than one season.

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Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: 2026 NFL mock draft: Alabama football players as NFL draft prospects