The special bond between Diggs brothers is obvious just in the way they talk about one another.

They lost their father, Aron to congestive heart failure 11 years ago, so the oldest took a leadership role. Stefon Diggs was that father figure to Trevon and Darez -- both of whom ended up playing college football in Alabama.

Darez, who played at UAB just signed a free-agent deal with the same Minnesota Vikings franchise that signed Stefon to a long-term deal after last season. Trevon opted to return for his senior year at Alabama after breaking his foot a month into his junior season.

As a receiver coming off a 102-catch fourth NFL season, Stefon Diggs is an emerging star. That’s perfect for a cornerback like Trevon because they can workout together

Stefon Diggs at first answered a question about those duals with a straight face last week at the NFL draft speaking with AL.com after an event with Courtyard Marriott hotels.

“I beat his ass. What do you mean?” Diggs said, holding back the smile before cracking. “No, I’m just kidding. We do one-on-ones and work on his feet and just work on his breaks because, you know, you kind of have to stay sharp. He takes pride in his work and he’s been working really hard as of late, ever since he got hurt too. So, I look forward to him having a good year.”

So, little brother doesn’t get him once or twice? Maybe a fluke?

“No,” Stefon Diggs said. “I don’t lose.”

Trevon Diggs spoke a little about those intra-family showdowns this spring. He said they work on releases, coming out of breaks while doing exhaustive one-on-one reps.

“He’s a good route runner,” Trevon Diggs said, “so that helps and prepares me for these guys too, who also run great routes.”

The broken foot that ended Trevon Diggs’ season in the sixth game at Arkansas was a jarring blow for the junior last October. He’d waited his turn, shifting to cornerback full time as a sophomore, starting the season opener against Florida State, then losing the job.

After a solid month of September, Trevon Diggs was the most consistent starter at cornerback until he felt something was wrong in his foot at Arkansas. He wasn’t as sharp in the 65-31 win and the x-ray later showed why.

The bone was broken and his season was over.

“He was down. Of course he was,” Stefon Diggs said. “Who wouldn’t be? But with my conversations with him, I’m the older brother but I’m also somebody who is going to hold him accountable and let him know there’s nothing you can do about it right now. Right now you have to wait it out, cry it out or do whatever you have to do but when it’s time to get back to rehab, you need to get back to it because you can’t fix it right now.”

Trevon Diggs said he contributed by working with the young defensive backs who stepped in like true freshman starter Patrick Surtain II.

Big brother Stefon saw Trevon Diggs’ mature in the process of returning from the injury.

“He knows the game isn’t promised now and he takes it a lot more seriously,” Stefon Diggs said. “I know his approach is great this year. How he approaches the game and his maturation and his growth is going to show.”

He’s in the right place to develop a career, Stefon Diggs said, while calling Nick Saban “definitely a genius” in producing defensive backs.

That said, there’s plenty of work to do when the brothers get together.

There will be no free passes from the star receiver of the Minnesota Vikings. While a few early mock drafts project Trevon Diggs as a potential first-rounder next spring, he’ll get the full coaching experience from his older brother.

“I told him he needs to work on everything,” Stefon Diggs said. “You ain’t that good yet. You’re on a good team too. I feel like you can get better in all areas. I told him you have a little bit of ball skills because you played receiver but don’t forget how to catch.”

Michael Casagrande is an Alabama beat writer for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.