Round two of the NFL Draft gave Jason Licht and Todd Bowles the perfect opportunity to add a dynamic defensive piece in preparation for the upcoming season. Elite linebacker prospect Dallas Turner and top EDGE Laiatu Latu were off the board, so they turned to Alabama Crimson Tide EDGE rusher Chris Braswell.
Anyone remember this?.. Chris Braswell showing a freshman qb what it’s like to play with the big boys 🫨
Tampa Bay got a mean one! 😈 pic.twitter.com/0WtZZvC68n
— Tide in Motion (@TideinMotionYT) April 27, 2024
Braswell redshirted during COVID-19 and started playing under Nick Saban in 2021. After playing a reserve role in 2021, Braswell made a massive jump in production as well as how the coaches at Alabama viewed him in 2022. Though at any other school he would likely be the top defensive player on the depth chart, Alabama is a different animal altogether. He played a semi-rotational role still though contributing much more than in 2021. Chris totaled 21 tackles (4.5 for loss), 2.5 sacks, and a forced fumble by season’s end, solidifying himself as a major weapon for the Crimson Tide defense.
Moving into his Junior year (2023), Braswell was almost universally considered a Top 50 prospect, settling in as the second or third rated EDGE rusher in all of Division 1. Over the 2023 campaign, he amassed twice the tackles he’d had in 2022, with 42 total, added to 10.5 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, a blocked kick, and even an interception returned for a touchdown versus Mississippi State.
Braswell and his first round draft pick teammate Dallas Turner led one of the stiffest defenses in all of college football, losing only a single game all year, which was in Week 2 against the Texas Longhorns. When the dust settled on 2023, Alabama found themselves in the National Championship game against Michigan, though they would be overrated and drop the contest in Overtime 27-20.
Chris Braswell is going to be a STUD down in Tampa Bay! pic.twitter.com/uLwIRugOpd
— Sidelines – Bama (@SSN_Alabama) April 27, 2024
In an era of modern roster updates and constant transfer portal hopping, Braswell stayed the course at Alabama, even when he remained below others on the depth chart. Alabama breeds talent year after year and this past year was no exception.
Braswell will now learn the nuances of professional football under one of the sharpest defensive minds in the world; Todd Bowles. The young prospect will be rocking number 43. It is important to note that although Braswell has played as a dynamic EDGE rusher, he was drafted, it seems as outside linebacker. Players who can move around from linebacker to multiple edge looks aren’t uncommon in the Micah Parsons era, and Bowles will certainly look to utilize this young weapon in all sorts of ways when the 2024 season kicks off.
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