The Alabama Crimson Tide have only been in fall camp for a few weeks, and the injury situation is already becoming worrisome. Per Pete Nakos of On3, running back AK Dear is expected to miss around six weeks with an ankle injury. Dear has been Alabama’s starting running back, the player getting first-team reps throughout fall camp, and losing him this early creates a real hole in the Crimson Tide backfield.

Alabama’s running back room has depth to absorb the blow

To be somewhat optimistic, that room does have a lot of good names. Daniel Hill is there, Kevin Riley is coming back, and then there’s freshman EJ Crowell, who a lot of people are high on. Crowell is also a little nicked up, but he should be fine. You never want to lose a starter or potential starter like Dear, who was having a great start to fall camp for Alabama. But the Crimson Tide have some resources to potentially fill in for him.

The question becomes whether any of those names can step up and command the same first-team confidence Dear had earned over the first few weeks of camp.

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5-star freshman Jorden Edmonds adds to the injury list

On the other side of the ball, arguably the best position group for the Crimson Tide took a hit as well. Five-star freshman defensive back Jorden Edmonds just had foot surgery and is expected to miss at least a few weeks. He should be back sometime soon for Alabama, but the timeline remains unclear.

Unlike the running back room, the starters in the defensive backfield are really set. Keon Sabb and Bray Hubbard hold down the safety spots. Zabian Brown and Dijon Lee are the outside corners. Red Morgan is locked in at the husky position. But Edmonds was making plays. This is a guy Alabama probably planned to use at some point during his freshman season. Whether that still happens or he takes a redshirt remains to be seen, but it is an injury of note nonetheless.

What this means heading into the season opener

In less than three weeks, Alabama will be back inside Bryant-Denny Stadium to take on Eastern Carolina. Neither of these injuries should derail what the Crimson Tide are building, but both carry weight. Dear’s absence removes a player who had separated himself as the lead back, and Edmonds’ surgery takes away a dynamic young piece in a secondary that could have used his development reps early in the year.

So should Alabama fans be worried? Not yet. But they should be paying attention. The Crimson Tide have enough talent across both position groups to handle the absences, and the real test comes when the games start and depth gets challenged.