Defensive players were top-heavy in the 2022 NFL draft.
The Jacksonville Jaguars picked Georgia linebacker Travon Walker off the top, and the Detroit Lions followed up with Michigan’s disruptive defensive end Aidan Hutchinson at No. 2 overall. The Houston Texans went with cornerback Derek Stingley next, and the New York Jets echoed with Sauce Gardner at No. 4. The New York Giants got into the action with Oregon’s hybrid defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux at No. 5.
Buy Texans TicketsThree edge defenders were selected with the first five picks of the draft, which was somewhat predictable with the amount of defensive talent entering the three-day event. Most analysts projected that those three players would be off the board within the first five selections; they couldn’t predict which team.
The first three picks of the 2023 NFL draft completely blindsided analysts.
Many considered it a quarterback-heavy draft featuring Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, and Will Levis — the Texans, in desperate need of a quarterback, selected Stroud with the second overall pick. The Arizona Cardinals were on the clock after Houston. In a shocking move, the Texans swapped picks with Arizona to select Alabama defensive end Will Anderson.
Although he was regarded as one of the best edge rushers in college over the last two years, many were surprised that the Texans general manager Nick Caserio would make a bold move and mortgage off future draft capital needed during Houston’s rebuilding years. But Caserio knew what he was doing, and he had the help of former defensive standout linebacker from the University of Alabama and current head coach DeMeco Ryans as an advisor to ensure him that the team was making the right move.
All Anderson has done in his brief NFL career, which consists of three games played, is prove to the naysayers and critics that he was worth every draft pick the team used to acquire him.
“I look at it as a blessing and following God’s plan,” said Anderson about going top-5 in the draft. “It was a very special moment in time because I am just trying to put on for the rest of the edge guys out here. To show that we are top contenders for being drafted high and we deserve to be drafted high. Being an edge, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to get to the quarterback, and that is not easy. It is a craft that you have to work at consistently and have a relentless motor.”
The former two-time SEC Defensive Player of the Year has been very consistent on the defensive side of the ball this season with 13 total tackles, one sack, and a team-high five quarterback hits. He has been persistent from the edge, often drawing a double team, which shows respect for such a young player. Against the Jaguars in Week 3, Anderson’s ferocity helped put pressure on starting quarterback Trevor Lawrence, which led to his many uncharacteristic mistakes.
“The disruption, especially from Will, has been there,” Texans defensive coordinator Matt Burke told the media. “The hits — I mean, he had like three hits in the first series of the game, I think, and the pressures and those sorts of things – so we ask the line to be disruptive and affect the quarterback, and he’s been doing that.”
One character trait that teammates have noticed about Anderson since his arrival at NRG Stadium is his unrelenting work ethic and willingness to do whatever it takes to help make the team successful. That attribute was displayed Sunday in Houston’s 37-17 victory over Jacksonville. Anderson lined up on special teams and erupted through the Jaguars line to block a 51-yard field-goal attempt, becoming the first rookie to block a field goal for the Texans since J.J. Watt in 2011.
“At the end of the day, I am here to play more than just defensive end,” said Anderson exclusively to the Texans Wire. “I am here to do whatever the coaches ask me to do, and my biggest thing is just being all in with the team.
“Everybody here wants to be a part of something. They don’t want to do just one job; they want to have their hands in something that helps the team. When you have teammates like that, it just makes it so much easier to win and build that team chemistry. Everyone wants to do more and give more for the organization because everyone is bought in and committed, and when you have teammates like that, the sky is the limit. I just want to make sure I am doing my part.”
