Anderson delivers on promise
HOUSTON — Nate Mccollum vividly remembers one of the first times he lined up against Will Anderson Jr. He was about 7 years old and facing off against his pee-wee football teammate in the renowned Oklahoma drill.
The whistle blew. Mccollum quickly lifted himself off the ground and onto his feet. And then … smack.
“I was still kind of smaller, and when I tried to tackle him, he ran straight through me,” Mccollum said with a laugh.
Even back then, Mccollum knew Anderson was a force to be reckoned with. So it comes as no surprise to him that the Texans' defensive end has transformed into a candidate for NFL defensive rookie of the year and helped lead his team to the divisional round of the playoffs.
Mccollum grew up and played with Anderson at Dutchtown High School in Hampton, Ga., about 30 miles south of Atlanta. So for the better part of a decade, he witnessed firsthand the orchestration of traits that led his close friend to the pinnacle.
“It's just his motor, his energy,” said Mccollum, now a receiver at North Carolina. “I see the same kid I played with when I was younger. He plays the same way, and that's hard to do at the level he's playing at. It's hard to keep the same energy and produce the same.”
Anderson, whom Mccollum described as a “hometown hero,” made a strong case for league-wide adulation this season as he unequivocally established himself as one of the Texans' cornerstones.
Lofty expectations were immediately placed on his broad shoulders when Houston traded up and selected the former Alabama All-american with the No. 3 overall draft pick last
April.
While blocking out the noise, Anderson, at age 22, has delivered.
He set a franchise rookie record with seven sacks, beating out Whitney Mercilus (2012) and Brooks Reed (2011), who each logged six. But while the sacks were absent from the box scores during an arduous six-game stretch early in the season, Anderson was still menacing opposing quarterbacks as he meticulously fashioned his passrushing technique.
Anderson led all rookies with 59 total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus. ESPN Analytics has him third in the league with a pass-rush win rate of 25.8%, falling in line behind a couple of perennial All-pros — the Cowboys' Micah Parsons (35.3) and the Browns' Myles Garrett (30.5). Anderson was second in ESPN'S run-stop win rate among edge defenders at 35.4%, coming in behind the Raiders' Maxx Crosby (35.9), another All-pro.
Anderson really came on strong at the end of the season. Over the Texans' final three games, he collected 18 total pressures, including four sacks and
10 hurries. His game against the Titans on New Year's Eve was perhaps his most impressive. Despite playing only 12 snaps while battling an ankle injury, he piled up six pressures and two sacks during the 26-3 victory that helped bolster Houston's playoff aspirations.
Anderson got his first chance to compete in the postseason Saturday in front of a sold-out NRG Stadium. He played a huge role in the Texans' 45-14 wildcard thumping of the Browns with six pressures and a sack.
Appropriately discussed in conjunction with a historic performance from rookie quarterback C.J. Stroud, Anderson received high praise from Texans coach Demeco Ryans after the dust settled.
“Nobody has said it — we should have the offensive and defensive rookie of the year,” Ryans proclaimed. “Both guys stepped up big-time for us — C.J. with the offense and Will on defense, play after play. We know he's battling an injury, but he's one of the toughest guys I've ever been around. You have to drag him off the field. He's not coming off. He continues to fight, was able to be productive and get sacks, and that's what we needed from our defensive line today.”
While playoff performances are not considered in rookie of the year balloting, Anderson certainly did enough during the regular season to stake his claim as one of the league's fastest-rising talents.
According to USA Today NFL reporter Lorenzo Reyes, one of 50 voters for the AP defensive rookie of the year award, several players deserved a serious look.
“In Will's case, I think he's just as deserving as any, and it came down to rewatching a lot of his reps and rewatching his competitors — essentially splitting hairs,” Reyes said. “He's a player who consistently pops up with effort and general positive play. And even when his rushes didn't necessarily yield stats, you saw how his presence created opportunities for his teammates.”
Other strong candidates for the honor include Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon and Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter, who were drafted fifth and ninth overall, respectively. But only Anderson will be in action this weekend as the Texans battle the top-seeded Ravens on the road in the AFC divisional playoffs.
Houston's budding star is enjoying the moment.
“When you love a sport so much and you're with a team like this, it just makes you want to give more,” Anderson said following the Texans' wild-card victory. “The guys in the locker room, just seeing how hard they fight, seeing how hard they go out and play, I think it just keeps everybody going. It's that bond that we built, that brotherly love that we built, everything like that. Like, I'm going to play for my brother, and if he falls, I'm going to pick him up. And if I fall, I know he's going to pick me up and have my back.”