Alabama coach Nick Saban said the two former Crimson Tide wide receivers on the Atlanta Falcons give the NFL team something beyond a pair of good pass-catchers.

"I think they'll both do a great job as competitors," Saban said of Julio Jones and Calvin Ridley, "and I think they'll be good teammates and they'll affect other people in a positive way. And I think in professional sports, that's a real plus."

Jones joined the Falcons as the sixth player picked in the 2011 NFL Draft, and Ridley came aboard as the 26th selection in this year's draft.

On our roster, we have two of the most prolific @AlabamaFTBL wide receivers.



We spoke to Nick Saban, about what we can expect from Jones and Ridley. pic.twitter.com/grvZhllgCO — Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) July 31, 2018

Atlanta traded five draft picks to move into position to select Jones after he caught 179 passes for 2,653 yards at Alabama over the 2008, 2009 and 2010 seasons. The former Foley High School star helped the Tide win the BCS national championship for the 2009 season.

"I think one thing Julio sort of reflects the culture," Saban told the Falcons' official web site. "Those guys came here when we weren't any good. Julio Jones decided to come to Alabama when we were 6-6. They sort of accepted a challenge to make Alabama something special. So they created the standard, and he was a big part of that -- the kind of player he was, the kind of competitor he was, the work ethic he had, the intangibles that he played with."

With the Falcons, Jones has earned five Pro Bowl invitations, made first-team All-Pro twice, led the NFC in receiving yards in each of the past four seasons and joined Pro Football Hall of Fame member Marvin Harrison as the only NFL players who have recorded four consecutive seasons with at least 1,400 receiving yards.

Now Jones gets to work with Ridley, who played at Alabama from 2015 through 2017. He played for two CFP national-championship teams as he caught 224 passes for 2,781 yards for the Tide.

Saban said he thinks the Falcons are "going to like" Ridley.

"One of the things about Calvin that we always had to do here," Saban said, "we had to have a Catapult System on him, which is like a GPS, to measure his workload because he would work so hard, run so many routes, he'd run himself right in the ground. So you had to pull back because he'll just keep running until he can't run."

Ridley said during a Monday press conference that it's hard for him to slow down.

"I think I have a lot of energy," Ridley said. "I feel like I can't just sit down. I always want to go do something. We'll get out of the meeting and I'll go in the weight room and do some curls or something real quick, then go right to another meeting. I don't know, I just feel like I need to move. I don't like to sit down. I've got a lot of energy."

That might have caught up with Ridley at the Falcons' training camp on Saturday, when he had to leave practice early because he was "a little dehydrated."

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Saban also has a connection to Falcons coach Dan Quinn. When Saban served as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins in 2005 and 2006, Quinn worked as the team's defensive-line coach.

Saban said it was plain to him that Quinn "had a very bright future" in coaching.

"I knew," Saban said, "because of his energy, his enthusiasm, he's very bright, smart, understands the game well, understands players and is a good motivator that he had a bright future. ...

"He's just got the right stuff. He thinks about other people, doesn't have a great big ego, really a good leader. I think that's important when you're a head coach."

Respect from one of the greatest 💯 @AlabamaFTBL coach Nick Saban hired Dan Quinn in 2005. Looking back, he's not surprised by the success that DQ has had. pic.twitter.com/V6OzbEHnbb — Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) July 25, 2018

Saban and Quinn's paths crossed again in 2011, the first of Quinn's two seasons as Florida defensive coordinator. Saban's Crimson Tide defeated the Gators 38-10 on Oct. 1, 2011.

From Florida, Quinn became the defensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks before taking the Falcons' top job in 2015. Quinn has a 29-19 regular-season record and a 3-2 postseason mark with Atlanta. The Falcons won the NFC championship for the 2016 season, when they lost in overtime to the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI.

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