When the Washington Redskins selected Alabama offensive lineman Ross Pierschbacher in the fifth round of the NFL Draft on April 27, he joined seven former Crimson Tide standouts on the NFL team’s roster.

The Alabama contingent includes defensive end Jonathan Allen, inside linebacker Reuben Foster and Shaun Dion Hamilton and nose tackle Da'Ron Payne.

“By him playing guard, and (Alabama) coach (Nick) Saban definitely believes in first string versus first string,” Hamilton said during an appearance on “Redskin Nation.” “So we were talking about it after he got drafted, ‘Well, I guess I’ll be going up against you and Payne and Jon Allen again and Reuben.”

The other Alabama alumni on the Redskins' roster are outside linebacker Ryan Anderson, safety Landon Collins and wide receiver Cam Sims. Pierschbacher played with all the former Tide players except Collins.

“I think just having played with those guys in practice and gone through kind of the same process, as they like to say,” Pierschbacher said during an appearance on "Border to Border with Matt Josephs on WXGI-FM in Richmond, Virginia, "knowing what to expect the culture to be like there and kind of the goals that they have and their mindset as far as winning goes and stuff like that. It’ll be nice to catch back up with those guys and just have some comfortable faces around the locker room will be nice. …

"I'm excited to get back in practice and battle with those guys again. It was always a good time."

Pierschbacher said he thought facing off against future pros in practice had prepared him well for the NFL.

“You had to bring it every single play in practice for us,” Pierschbacher said, “and I think that’s the same thing in the NFL. Everyone’s getting paid a lot of money to play football, and that’s their job. It’s the cream of the crop, and so I think just not having any bad plays or anything like that, taking any plays off or any games. You have to be prepared. I think coach Saban did a great job of that even when we were playing FCS teams or whatever. You just try to have a speed as mentally locked in and be as prepared as possible and just not get complacent. I think that’ll, hopefully, translate well in the NFL.”

Hamilton is expecting that to happen.

"We came in together from high school,” Hamilton said. “Really good player. Started four years at Alabama. Not many guys can do that. He was All-American, All-SEC and all that kind of stuff, so he’s going to be a great player for us. …

"You never find guys to start for Nick Saban for four years, so he’s going to be a great player.”

Pierschbacher started 57 games at Alabama -- more than any other non-specialist in the Tide's history. He played his first three seasons at left guard before moving to center as a senior.

Pierschbacher said the toughest part about the move to center was having “Quinnen Williams about 2 inches from your facemask.” The New York Jets selected the Alabama nose tackle with the third choice in the 2019 NFL Draft -- 150 picks before Pierschbacher went to Washington.

Left guard would appear the quickest way to the field for Pierschbacher. Chase Roullier returns after starting every game at center for the Redskins last season, but left guard has been a problem spot for Washington. The Redskins haven't had one player make all the starts at that spot in their offensive line since 2013, and last season, four players started there.

Washington signed former first-round pick Ereck Flowers in free agency this offseason with an eye toward converting the tackle to guard, and the Redskins used a fourth-round draft choice in April on Indiana left guard Wes Martin.

“We took a great guard, a very productive guard, played a lot of snaps at left guard, which obviously we’ve had some issues at that position,” Washington coach Jay Gruden said. "Ereck was brought in here. He’s never played guard. Wes has, obviously, been doing it for a long time. But we’re hoping that athletically with the skill set that Ereck has, he can do that. But Ereck is also a good tackle, so we have some options there. But we’ll look at all of them. …

"(Pierschbacher) played guard at Alabama and transitioned to center this year. Versatility on that front -- we've mentioned it many, many times how it comes in handy throughout the course of a season. Ross has played some big-time games, and he's played both positions, so it's great to have that luxury of versatility."

Pierschbacher said Redskins offensive-line coach Bill Callahan worked him out as a left guard after Alabama's second Pro Day on April 2.

“It’s weird because I feel like I have more experience at left guard, but I also felt like I played my best football at center,” Pierschbacher said when asked where he would play in Washington. “So I really don’t know. Whatever the coaching staff thinks. Coach Callahan and coach Gruden, it’s really up to them, and I’m willing to play whatever. I feel comfortable at both.”

Washington will hold its rookie minicamp Friday through Sunday.

Pierschbacher said he wanted to “go out there, impress the coaches and show them really what I’m made out of and that they made the right choice drafting me and earn the respect of my teammates and bond with those guys and just get my career really jump-started off to a great start.”

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