Alabama DB Malachi Moore Talks Relationship with Detroit Lions' Brian Branch

The versatile Crimson Tide defensive back shares some similarities with the Detroit Lions standout and they stay in communication because of it.

Oct 31, 2020; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama defensive back Patrick Surtain II (2), Alabama defensive back Brian Branch (14) and Alabama defensive back Malachi Moore (13) combine to tackle Mississippi State running back Jo'quavious Marks (21) at Bryant-Denny Stadium during the second half of Alabama's 41-0 win over Mississippi State. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr/The Tuscaloosa News via Imagn Images / The Tuscaloosa News-Imagn Images

INDIANAPOLIS — The Alabama Crimson Tide produced a plethora of NFL standouts, many of which had been drafted in the last few years. Crimson Tide defensive back Malachi Moore reflected on his time with one of those breakout Alabama stars.

Moore and Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch grew a very tight bond in both of their times at Alabama, one that still exists to this day. It's not a coincidence that the two play similar styles of football at the defensive back position, with the versatility to play in more than just a singular coverage.

The two talented secondary members came in in the same recruiting class, kicking off their friendship there. Now, they stay in contact frequently.

“We came in together as freshmen in 2020 and we were like two peas in a pod,” Moore said. “We really were attached everywhere we went.”

Since they entered Tuscaloosa at the same exact time, the play styles and mindsets of the two players are similar. That also translates to being available to do whatever is asked of them, something that happened the past season.

“We’ve got a similar mindset where we don’t want to limit ourselves to what we can do on the football field,” Moore said. 

At the same time, all of Moore and his former Crimson Tide teammates that are now in the NFL have the same thing in common. It must be a mindset that is instilled in all Crimson Tide football players, one that leads to opportunities to play in the NFL.

“All of us are like-minded,” Moore said. “We’re still brothers to this day and our relationship is great.”

Part of that shared mindset is the desire to be great. When Moore is playing alongside guys like Branch and another Detroit Lions defensive back, Terrion Arnold, the three are bound to find success in some shape or form. That's been the case for two of them and the third could be on the way.

“At the end of the day, we just want to be great,” Moore said. “When we were in school, we pushed each other to be great each and every day.”

Alabama has long been a farm for productive NFL players and the mindset that Moore, Branch and Arnold share has to be part of the reason why there are so many. That's a thought process that can easily translate to the NFL and get a player on the field.

Moore and Branch are also very similar in the ways they play. Both are strong and physical, with the flexibility to play at more than one spot in the secondary. Branch has reflected his time at Alabama and the similarities in his and Moore's play with how he's played in Detroit.

“We come from the same background, [when] it comes to technique and playstyle,” Moore said. “He still plays the same type of style that we did at Alabama.”

Both Branch and Moore made the change from a utility defensive back, or a Star, to playing safety this most recent season. That gave the duo another reason to communicate with and learn from each other, something they've been doing since 2020.

“He got moved to safety this year also, when I got moved to safety so we would talk back-and-forth with each other on what we were seeing and how we could be instinctive and make plays,” Moore said. 

There are no doubts that there's a role for how Moore plays in the NFL. A variety of teams could probably use a versatile defensive back like Moore, but the chance to play with two of his close, former teammates in Detroit would be a hard decision to say no to.

“It would be great to play with my guys Terrion [Arnold] and BB [Brian Branch] on the defensive side of the ball,” Moore said. “We already have that great chemistry and we come from the same lineage in college football under coach [Nick] Saban.”

Moore's draft stock clocks him in at around a day-two player, somewhere around the third and fourth rounds of the NFL draft. Because of that, there is a chance that he does end up playing with his former Alabama teammates, if the Lions decide they'd like to add more depth to their defensive back room.

After playing at Alabama for five seasons, there's a lot for Moore to take away from his career and his teammates. After playing alongside Branch for multiple seasons and enduring similar position and role changes that Branch did, he learned that there is value in being able to do more than one thing for a team.

“That’s the biggest thing, to just have confidence in yourself and be able to play multiple positions, and that creates more value for yourself,” Moore said. 

Moore can do a variety of things very well and that will help him find the field in the NFL. At the end of the day, his years of playing experience in one of the toughest conferences in college football, surrounded by some of its best players, will have him prepared for the next level.

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