Saban rebukes idea Alabama players enter NFL worn down

Any notion that Nick Saban's players enter the NFL worn down because they're overworked at Alabama is bologna, according to the head coach.

"When you talk to NFL teams, none of them ever say that to me," Saban said Friday on the "Brock and Salk" radio show, according to NFL.com's Chase Goodbread. "I don't know where that came from. Eddie Lacy comes out and is rookie of the year as a running back. Where's the wear and tear? We had 45 guys on NFL rosters last year, which is more than any other college team, so where's the wear and tear? I don't see it."

Whispers that Saban's players are overused in college have made their way through the grapevine over the past few years. The conversation really picked up this year, though, after Derrick Henry recorded a whopping 395 carries en route to a national championship and Heisman Trophy.

Prior to the 2016 NFL Draft, five of Saban's former running backs at Alabama had been picked in the NFL draft, but none managed to take the league by storm as many expected.

Under Saban, Alabama has been notorious for its physical identity and pro-style schemes. However, the coach said his program carefully monitors his players' workloads and doesn't put the interests of his program above those of his players.

"We use a catapult system here, which is a GPS system that measures wear and tear on players," Saban said. "We certainly keep a balance in what we do. We also keep a record of how our players progress through the season and how they finish the season, based on the workload we have. Those players all improve their workload throughout the season. We had the lowest injury rate of any team in our conference, which is the only way we can measure it."

Saban also noted that Alabama works with renowned doctors Lyle Cain and James Andrews, both of whom have plenty of experience dealing with NFLers, to ensure players aren't overworked.