Tua Tagovailoa vs. Jalen Hurts only two of at least 11 Alabama players in Dolphins-Eagles

MIAMI GARDENS — Dolphins guard Lester Cotton was born in Tuscaloosa and started for the Alabama national championship team that featured Jalen Hurts and closed with Tua Tagovailoa.

How is Tua viewed in his hometown?

"G.O.A.T.," Cotton said this week. "That's it. G.O.A.T."

Hurts had 77 percent of Alabama's pass attempts in that 2017 season. But nobody will ever forget the final pass of that season. It was Tua, off the bench, to DeVonta Smith, for a 41-yard overtime touchdown pass to knock off Georgia and win it all.

"I actually put my hand up, couldn't watch," said Dolphins defensive lineman Da'Shawn Hand, who played for Alabama that season. "And then I remember I like looked up and I was like, he caught it, 'Go! Go!' So I just ran out just on the field. That was crazy."

"The whole d-line turned their heads," said Dolphins defensive lineman Raekwon Davis, who played for Alabama that season. "I knew he threw the ball to DeVonta. But I didn't know that was game. I was ready to go out there and play some more!"

If you're sensing a trend here, it's that, yes, the NFL is littered with former Alabama players.

Alabama players dominate NFL landscape

At the start of this season, it was a league-leading 57 former Crimson Tide.

And on Sunday night in Philadelphia, in a massive game between the 5-1 Eagles and 5-1 Dolphins, there will be at least 11 former Alabama players on the game day roster.

"It'll be fun," said Dolphins receiver Jaylen Waddle. "Lot of ‘Bama guys out there.”

Waddle didn't actually join the fun at Alabama until 2018. He recalls watching Tua-to-Smith on television.

"It was play to be remembered that’s going to be remembered for a long time," Waddle said this week.

Waddle has remained close with Smith as they are on a Bama receivers group chat.

Alabama coach Nick Saban said this week that Tagovailoa and Hurts supported each other in 2017 and 2018. But Hurts transferred to Oklahoma after it became apparent it was Tua's team.

"Both great quarterbacks," Cotton recalled this week, citing in particular Tua's leadership skills and demeanor and Hurts' poise and mental toughness.

Jalen Hurts left 'Bama when Tua emerged

There is mutual respect, though neither quarterback has indicated they've remained especially close.

This week, Hurts was short in a few responses to Alabama-related questions and suggested that he's sure he and Tua will "catch up after the game."

Tua added: "There’s different ways to skin the cat, right? Many different ways. He went down a different road than I did to get to where I’m at. And he had to go down a different road to get to where he’s at. But like I said, I got a lot of respect for him – who he is as a person who he is as a player and wish him the best of luck."

Other former Alabama players on Philadelphia's roster include Landon Dickerson, Josh Jobe, Eli Ricks, and Tyler Steen. Former Alabama receiver Julio Jones was added to the Eagles' practice squad this week.

For seven straight years, Alabama has led the NFL in players produced.

"I think when I got there, it was like, ‘Okay, I don’t want to mess up what we have here, so I’m going to try to find where I fit,’" Tagovailoa said this week. "But then it’s also one of those things where if you aren’t strong mentally, you either had to be, like find out you had to be, or figure it out. Or you wouldn’t have made it there."

Added Cotton, the Dolphins' lineman from Alabama: "There's a standard. The whole reason why you went to Bama is so you are able to survive here."

Tua described it as an "aura" at Alabama.

"You didn’t really speak of what the standard was, but when you got there, you knew what that was," he said. "And you knew you couldn’t do anything to bring that down. The guys wouldn’t allow you to."

Tua, Dolphins, can overcome naysayers in Philly

Sunday's game is massive for Tua, who was 1-3 in nationally-televised starts last season.

It's going to be cold and windy, and Tua can overcome perceptions about his ability to flourish in less-than-ideal environments.

Tua Tagovailoa on track for NFL MVP, and no, not any QB would flourish for Dolphins | Schad

The entire nation will be watching this one.

It's been eight years since two teams with 5-1 records or better met on "Sunday Night Football."

It's been seven years since the No. 1 and No. 2 ranked offensive teams met this late in the season in any NFL game.

Do the Dolphins knock off a defending Super Bowl participant, thus demonstrating they are legitimate Super Bowl contenders themselves?

Interestingly, the many Bama players suggest their college experience prepared their mindsets for moments like this.

"Really just treat it like any other game," Waddle said. "There’s no game that’s bigger than the other one."

Joe Schad is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at jschad@pbpost.com and follow him on social media platforms @schadjoe. Sign up for Joe's free weekly Dolphins Pulse Newsletter. Help support our work by subscribing.

Sunday's game

Dolphins (5-1) at Eagles (5-1)

8 p.m., NBC; Fubo, NFL+, and YouTube by subscription outside South Florida

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Roll Tide! Tua Tagovailoa, Jalen Hurts, Jaylen Waddle, DeVonta Smith all play Sunday