In Sunday night’s NFL game between the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles, 12 Alabama alumni will be eligible to play in what shapes us as one of the marquee games of at least the first half of the NFL’s 2023 season.

And the connections between former college teammates already have come into play.

“He gave my mom tickets to the game,” Miami wide receiver Jaylen Waddle said about Philadelphia wide receiver DeVonta Smith.

If Eagles wide receiver Julio Jones plays on Sunday night, he’ll become the 67th Alabama alumnus to appear in the NFL this season, so having former teammates as adversaries occurs every Sunday for ex-Tide standouts. What’s unusual about the Dolphins-Eagles game is the volume.

“It’s going to be fun,” Waddle said. “We got to practice against them last year. I’ve been watching them from afar, so to play in person, it’ll be fun. Lot of Bama guys out there.”

Waddle and Smith were teammates for three seasons at Alabama, including on the 2018 Tide, which has the most representation in the game with seven players. All seven were on either the 2017 or the 2020 CFP national-championship team, with Smith playing on both.

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That kind of experience in college helps create a particular mindset for Sunday night’s game, Waddle said.

“No pressure at all,” Waddle said. “We’re going into a hostile environment against a good team. It’s going to be fun. It’s going to be real competitive going in, but I wouldn’t say pressure — no. …

“Really just treat it like any other game. There’s no game that’s bigger than the other one. It’s going to be pretty regular.”

Smith and Miami nose tackle Raekwon Davis and quarterback Tua Tagovailoa played with eight of Alabama’s Sunday night representatives apiece while with the Tide.

Jones is the only Alabama alumnus on the Eagles and the Dolphins who won’t have a former Crimson Tide teammate in Sunday night’s game. After playing at Alabama from 2008 to 2010, Jones had three seasons of NFL experience before the next of the 11 players on the Sunday night rosters arrived to play for the Tide.

The other Alabama players include Miami guard Lester Cotton and defensive tackle Da’Shawn Hand and Philadelphia guard Landon Dickerson, quarterback Jalen Hurts, cornerbacks Josh Jobe and Eli Ricks and offensive lineman Tyler Steen.

The 12 players represent 12 Crimson Tide teams. In addition to the 2018 squad’s seven players, there also are six apiece from the 2017 and 2019 teams.

That corresponds to the Alabama teams best represented in the NFL today. There are 27 players from the 2017 team currently on NFL active rosters and 25 apiece from the 2018 and 2019 teams.

Recently, those players received a care package from their alma mater.

“We had the shirts, the hats, the winter gear, beanies,” Waddle said of the boxes. “They didn’t send us no shoes, but we had the whole shebang. I just seen somebody else’s box, my locker mate, they sent him just a T-shirt and a hat. I said, ‘We don’t get down like that at the Tide.’ You feel me?

“Yeah, they did us right.”

The Dolphins and Eagles will kick off at 7:20 p.m. CDT Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. NBC will televise the game.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.