A pair of November losses caused Alabama’s 2019 season to go up in smoke before the Crimson Tide even had a chance to prove itself in the SEC championship or College Football Playoff.

Alabama allowed a combined 96 points, nine touchdowns and 913 yards to LSU and Auburn in the two highest-scoring games opponents have levied against Nick Saban’s defense since his arrival in Tuscaloosa in 2007.

Months later, former Alabama outside linebacker Terrell Lewis reflected Thursday at the NFL combine on what wrong in the two losses.

“I just feel like sometimes, especially the LSU game, a lot of times they caught us in a situation where there was a lack of communication and they ended up winning that play and scoring," Lewis explained. “As a defense, I feel like it was basically too many mental errors as a defense. Same for Auburn. I feel like we had a lot of plays when it didn’t go our way and they caught us when we were at our worst.”

Asked to clarify whether he meant player-to-player communication or coach-to-player to communication, Lewis did not shy away from implicating those making the calls from the sideline.

“Communication from the top down, as far as even play calling and as far as just on the field, guys relaying the calls and relaying the signals, stuff like that,” he said.

In his first season as defensive coordinator, Pete Golding acknowledged before the Citrus Bowl he had “[his] growing pains” in the new role. He also cited growing pains from freshmen linebackers Christian Harris and Shane Lee, who stepped in as starters after preseason injuries to Dylan Moses and Joshua McMillon.

Yet when asked Thursday about the impact the two veteran linebackers’ injuries had on the defense, former Alabama defensive lineman Raekwon Davis downplayed it.

“It wasn’t a big effect," he said. "Two young players. They were great players. It all break down to everybody. It wasn’t just that. Just literally everybody. Bad communication with everybody. One player mess up, we all mess up.”

In particular, Davis pointed to LSU’s offense “fast-balling” and as a result Alabama players being caught “looking to the sideline” for help as the ball was quickly snapped.

“During that game I felt like it was all of us, as a unit, bad communication,” Davis said. "We hurt ourselves, all together.”

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Davis and Lewis were not the only Alabama players at the combine in Indianapolis who, unprompted, brought up communication when asked about the defensive breakdowns in the LSU and Auburn losses.

Defensive back Shyheim Carter also cited “a lot of miscommunication” when describing what happened during the defeats while placing more blame on the players.

“I blame it on myself. Me being who I am, the leader I am, I blame it on myself, those two losses," he said Friday. “The coaches may try to take the blame for it but I wouldn’t throw anybody under the bus. I’ll take the blame for those losses.”

Outside linebacker Anfernee Jennings, a team captain, said Thursday he felt it was “imperative” for him to communicate defensive calls to his teammates in the wake of injuries to the defense’s traditional place-setters at inside linebacker.

“We all relayed the call,” Jennings said. "We all got the call across the board and did the best we could.”