Even from the Superdome press box above the clouds, something looked especially messed up with the way C.J. Mosley was tackled.

This was Jan. 9, 2012 -- known as one of the finest defensive performances in Alabama history -- but the image of Alabama's star linebacker on the turf is the image burned in this memory. A dislocated hip resulted from a twisting tackle after a third-quarter interception in the Crimson Tide's 21-0 steamrolling of LSU in the BCS Championship Game.

It was one of many frankly ghoulish injuries suffered by Alabama linebackers of the Nick Saban era. There's no real pattern or dots to connect even after the trend continued this week with Terrell Lewis. His torn ACL would seem to sideline the junior for what was supposed to be his breakout season.

The trend is wild when you look back a few years.

Dont'a Hightower was poised for a big sophomore season in 2009 when practically everything in his left knee exploded. One low block against Arkansas tore his ACL, MCL and meniscus.

It quickly ended his run playing next to Rolando McClain, and though Alabama still won a national title that fall, Hightower still wasn't the same on that knee in 2010. That same season saw Courtney Upshaw play most of the season on a bad ankle that limited production until ruining Kirk Cousin's Capital One Bowl with three sacks.

After that season, linebacker Alex Watkins his meniscus and ligaments in his knee in the spring. He fought back to play in 2011 when he broke his arm against Tennessee. Two weeks later, the senior was on the field playing LSU with a steel plate in his arm. A number of injuries from a hamstring and back kept middle linebacker Chris Jordan's career from taking off in 2011.

Mosley also missed time that fall with an elbow injury before going down in the national title game with the gruesome dislocated hip.

There were a few more minor injuries over the next few years. Reuben Foster missed time in each of his last three seasons with injuries ranging from stingers to concussions. Coaches worked overtime to improve the dangerous habits in the former top recruit's tackling style to avoid more severe neck and head injuries.

For the most part, major injuries were avoided for a few years. Middle linebacker Trey DePriest broke his foot in 2013 spring practice, though it didn't sideline him that fall. Denzell Devall had a few injuries in 2012, 2013 and missed spring practice in 2015 after foot surgery.

All of that seemed elementary compared to the wave of crutches and slings that washed over the program starting last fall. Even Saban admitted he'd never seen anything like what happened starting in the opener against Florida State. Four key linebackers -- Christian Miller, Anfernee Jennings, Rashaan Evans and Lewis -- went down. Miller (biceps) and Lewis (elbow) appeared done for the year while Evans had a groin injury that lingered well into the season. Jennings only missed a few weeks with a sprained ankle.

Then there's Mack Wilson. A year earlier, he tweeted about having surgery on his meniscus before his first fall practice. Then he broke his foot in the Nov. 5 win over LSU. That same night, Shaun Dion Hamilton's Alabama career ended with a broken knee cap. His 2016 season also concluded prematurely with a torn ACL in the SEC title game win over Florida.

Wilson was back in time for fill-in starter Dylan Moses to suffer the same Jones fracture of the foot that knocked him out of both playoff games. Miller and Lewis had returned by then on the outside and Lewis had a crucial sack in overtime of the win over Georgia.

Also, Jennings tore ligaments in a serious knee injury in the closing moments of Alabama's Sugar Bowl win over Clemson. It was bad enough to keep him out of spring practice, though he's expected to return this fall.

None of these 2017 injuries kept Alabama from celebrating a national title in January. Hamilton's late-season ACL tear in 2016 was a detriment in a championship-game loss to Clemson in which the defense was worn down, but it also couldn't be considered a direct reason for the result.

Losing Lewis for this season would be a significant blow for a group of linebackers already thinned. VanDarius Cowan's dismissal from the team was announced only 24 hours before Lewis' injury went public.

Of course, injuries aren't exclusive to the linebackers. It's just been a particularly painful trend at the second level of the Crimson Tide in recent years.

This season's puzzle just got complicated a few weeks before strapping on the pads.

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