This isn't ideal.

That's what coach Nick Saban said Wednesday.

The preference, Saban said, is for a player to be at either cornerback or nickel back. If possible, Alabama's coach would like to avoid having to use someone at both.

But Saban said of Tide sophomore defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, "If there's anybody who can do it, I think he's certainly the right kind of guy to do it."

Fitzpatrick excelled at nickel back as a freshman last year. This year, the former five-star recruit will likely get a chance to show his versatility.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pound Fitzpatrick is expected to be outside at cornerback when Alabama is in its base defense. He'll then probably slide inside to play nickel back when the Tide goes into its nickel and dime defenses.

It's a lot of responsibility. So why is Saban optimistic Fitzpatrick can handle it?

"He's very versatile and he's bright," Saban said of Fitzpatrick, who finished last season with 45 tackles, two sacks and two pick-sixes. "He's smart. He's very conscientious. He works hard every day."

Something else that makes Fitzpatrick capable of playing multiple positions? His combination of size, speed, strength and overall athleticism.

The New Jersey native's spring 40-yard dash time (4.43) was tied for seventh-fastest on the team. He also had the second-best vertical jump on the team (36 1/2 inches), bench-pressed 365 pounds and had the fourth-highest squat among non-linemen (505 pounds).

"People are probably going to be surprised to see my versatility because they only saw me play one position last year, the (nickel back) position, and now they'll most likely see me playing both that and corner," Fitzpatrick said. "So they'll get to see me playing inside and outside and get to see how athletic I am."

While Fitzpatrick played strictly inside at nickel back as a freshman, playing outside at cornerback isn't new for him.

Fitzpatrick said he "always played outside in high school." Cornerback, he said, is his "natural position."

He's apparently doing well out there.

A source texted AL.com after one of Alabama's 7-on-7 passing sessions this summer and said, "Minkah's looking good at corner."

"Last year, I was kind of all over the place because it was more challenging mentally last year," Fitzpatrick said. "Last year, I didn't know the playbook. I was still trying to learn all that and get comfortable with it. Now, I'm completely comfortable with it, completely comfortable with the playbook and completely comfortable with my techniques and stuff like that. So now it's more about mastering my technique and mastering my position."