re: JD Pickell picks Bama to not make it to the playoffs in 2026

I think it’s pretty reasonable to assume we are an 8-4 type team until proven otherwise.

New qb, haven’t proven we can run the ball for shite, and have shown a tendency to stink it up against lesser competition.

I think we have 10-2, 11-1 potential, and I hope it happens, but could see 8-4 pretty easily.

I think playoff aspirations are 100% on the offensive and defensive line refactor this offseason.

We seem to be going bigger on the DL to hold up against the run better. We are poised to play two 300+ lb guys in the middle again and the strong-side end is going to be 298. On paper, we're looking more like a Saban-era odd front. We ought to hold up a good bit better against the run if the guys play like Tarzan not Jane.

The offensive line is harder for me to believe we're going to see a big difference. It's easier to believe a body type shift on the DL is going to pay dividends on the bottom line metrics for the defense. The defense was generally pretty good for most of the season but the lightness on the front got us bullied a few times when the offense couldn't keep them off the field.

I think we have better athletes for the system now than the first two years but this OL is full of inexperience. What experience exists has not played a real game together since most of it was imported experience. I'm hopeful we see something much better than 2024 and 2025. However, what little tape I've seen is mixed. It felt like some of those highlight throws were probably sacks in live action (of course some of the sacks were probably scramble throws or runs too). However, I think we're better at LT athletically (in the ways that matter for an LT) than a year ago and Carroll moving inside to get James on the field seems like a good "find your best five" move.

We will see...if they're just average I think we have the perimeter talent to be a great overall offense with a mediocre run game. We've seen that work even against some of our best Saban squads with Watson's and Lawrence's Clemson offenses.