I think the SEC West being the best division in FBS and the SEC as a whole being overrated can both be true. I think divisions are an outdated construct at this point. SEC East is easy mode path to their title game. Flip UGA into the West for LSU and they likely aren't getting any SEC title game appearances, while LSU all of sudden is. Missouri has two title appearances by virtue of being placed in the East and not the West. Same with the weak division in the Big 10. Northwestern doesn't sniff the title game if they are in the tough division. This shit affects the NFL playoffs every year too and in the NBA the West has been the dominant conference (conferences sitting in for divisions here) for 20 years, resulting in a much easier path to the Finals for the East.
Hyperbole. My point is, Bama's last 10 years have been an incredible run in the most competitive era of the sport and the rest of the SEC is riding their achievement in the form of elevated rankings, perception, TV ratings, NFL draft picks and live rights contract money.