William Anderson Jr. (born September 2, 2001) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

for the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team plays its home games at N ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Alabama Crimson Tide The Alabama Crimson Tide refers to the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic varsity teams that represent the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide teams compete in the Na ...

, where he won several awards, such as the

Bronko Nagurski Trophy The Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football defensive player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) to be the best in the National Collegiate Athle ...

twice, and was a part of Alabama's

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...

in 2020. Anderson was selected by the Texans third overall in the

2023 NFL draft The 2023 NFL draft was the 88th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2023 NFL season, 2023 season. The NFL draft, draft was held outside of Kansas City Union Station, Union Station i ...

, who traded up to get him after selecting

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

quarterback

C. J. Stroud Coleridge Bernard "C. J." Stroud IV (born October 3, 2001) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes f ...

with the previous pick. He won

NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Various entities present an NFL Rookie of the Year award each season to the top rookies in the National Football League (NFL). The NFL considers the (rookie) of the year awards by the Associated Press (AP) to be its official honor. Since 2011, th ...

in 2023.

Early life

Anderson was born on September 2, 2001, in

Hampton, Georgia Hampton is a city in southwestern Henry County, Georgia, United States. The population as of the 2020 census was 8,368. It is a southeastern suburb in the Atlanta metropolitan area. History The city was once known as "Bear Creek" or "Bear Cre ...

. He attended Dutchtown High School, where he recorded 22 sacks with 15 tackles for loss as a senior in 2019. Anderson was named to ''

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' (''AJC'') is an American daily newspaper based in metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger ...

'' "Super 11" team and played in the 2020

All-American Bowl The All-American Bowl was an annual postseason college football bowl game played at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama from 1977 to 1990. The game was known as the Hall of Fame Classic from 1977 to 1985. In 1986, the National Football Foundatio ...

. Anderson committed to play

for the

College career

Anderson was named a starter at outside linebacker as a freshman in 2020. He was named second-team

All-Southeastern Conference The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season. Seasons

Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC: ...

(SEC) after finishing with seven

quarterback sack In gridiron football, a sack occurs when the quarterback (or another offensive player acting as a passer) is tackle (football move), tackled behind the line of scrimmage before throwing a forward pass, when the quarterback is tackled behind the l ...

s and 10.5

tackles Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position) A tackle is a playing position in American football. Historically, in the one-platoon system prevalent ...

for loss as the Crimson Tide won the

2021 College Football Playoff National Championship The 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game played on January 11, 2021, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. The seventh College Football Playoff National Championship, the game determine ...

. As a sophomore in 2021, Anderson won the

, was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and was voted a

unanimous All-American The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...

after recording 17.5 sacks and 34.5 tackles for loss, both of which led the nation. He finished fifth in Heisman Trophy voting. On November 17, 2022, Anderson recorded a 25-yard interception return for a touchdown against Louisiana-Monroe. In the 2022 season, Anderson had 51 total tackles (24 solo), ten sacks, and one interception in 13 games. His ten sacks led the SEC for the 2022 season. He won the

Bronko Nagurski Award The Bronko Nagurski Trophy has been awarded annually since 1993 to the collegiate American football defensive player adjudged by the membership of the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) to be the best in the National Collegiate Athle ...

Chuck Bednarik Award The Chuck Bednarik Award is presented annually to the defensive player of the year in college football as judged by the Maxwell Football Club to be the best in the United States. The award is named for Chuck Bednarik, a former college and profess ...

Lott Impact Trophy The Lott IMPACT Trophy is presented annually to a defensive college football player of the year for their personal character and athletic abilities. IMPACT is an acronym for: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community, and Tenacity. T ...

, and the

Lombardi Award The Rotary Lombardi Award is an award for college football in the United States. Awarded by the Rotary Club of Houston, Texas annually to the college football player "who best embodies the values and spirit of NFL's legendary coach Vince Lombard ...

, in addition to being named a consensus All-American and the SEC Defensive Player of the Year.

College statistics

Professional career

Anderson was selected third overall by the

in the

, in which, they traded with the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

from the 12th overall pick that they acquired from the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...

in the

Deshaun Watson Derrick Deshaun Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American professional football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Clemson Tigers, leading the team to a national ...

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

to move up to third overall. On June 23, 2023, Anderson signed a four-year deal worth $35.2 million featuring a $22.6 million signing bonus. In his NFL debut against the Ravens in week 1, Anderson recorded one sack and six total tackles. In week 13, against the Broncos, he recorded his first multi-sack game with two. As a rookie, he started in 13 games and appeared in 15. He finished with seven sacks, 45 total tackles (29 solo), and one pass defended. He was named to the PFWA NFL All-Rookie Team. He was named Defensive Rookie of the Year. Anderson was named to the

2023 Pro Bowl The 2023 Pro Bowl Games (branded as the 2023 Pro Bowl Games presented by Verizon for sponsorship reasons) was the National Football League's all-star game for the 2022 NFL season. For the first time, the event consisted of skills competitions and ...

following an injury to

American Football Conference The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest level of professional American football in the United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference ...

starter

Maxx Crosby Maxx Robert Crosby (born August 22, 1997) is an American professional American football, football defensive end for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Eastern Michigan Eagles football, ...

. In his postseason debut, Anderson had a sack in the 45–14 victory over the Browns in the Wild Card Round. In week 6 of the 2024 season, Anderson recorded three sacks, eight tackles and four tackles for loss in a 41–21 win over the New England Patriots, earning AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

Personal life

Anderson is a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

. Anderson is the son of Will Anderson Sr. and Tereon Anderson. He has five older sisters.

NFL career statistics

Regular season

References

External links

*
Houston Texans bio

Alabama Crimson Tide bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anderson, Will Jr. Living people 2001 births Alabama Crimson Tide football players All-American college football players American football outside linebackers People from Hampton, Georgia Players of American football from Henry County, Georgia 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen Houston Texans players American football defensive ends American Conference Pro Bowl players NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year winners