FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Hours before kickoff, Will Anderson Jr. was already wearing his game face and displaying signs of what was about to happen.
Anderson had bad intentions toward the New England Patriots’ offense, and the Texans’ Pro Bowl defensive end had set his ambitions on making things as difficult as imaginable for New England Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye in his first NFL start.
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Texans coach DeMeco Ryans picked up on the vibe from Anderson, the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year last season. He saw the storm that was coming as Anderson relentlessly chased down Maye for a career-high three sacks Sunday during a 41-21 road win at Gillette Stadium.
Anderson was a menace all game.
“I felt his mindset in pregame warmups, so I knew it was going to be a really good day for him,” Ryans said. “Will is getting better every week, and this was his best game by far.”
Anderson, drafted third overall in the first round out of Alabama last year, finished with a career-high eight tackles and four tackles for losses. He’s just the seventh player in franchise history to have a three-sack game. Not only did Anderson keep Maye from getting comfortable in the backfield, he also batted away one of his throws that was intercepted by safety Eric Murray off the deflection.
The interaction with Ryans is a game-day tradition for Anerson.
“I could tell by his eyes and that’s something that we do every game, and he could tell,” Anderson said. “That just gets me going. It just makes me way to keep playing hard.”
THE TERMINATOR 🤫
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) October 13, 2024
📺: @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/WfxkbCRCdI
A former Bronko Nagurski award winner, Lombardi award winner and consensus All-American for the Crimson Tide, Anderson recorded seven sacks and had 22 quarterback hits and 64 pressures as he became the third player in franchise history to be named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year as he joined the fraternity of Brian Cushing and Ryans.
“Proud of Will, massive game for him to be able to get after the quarterback the way he did,” Ryans said. “Just a really, really productive day by him, and he stayed out there. Loved his energy from start to finish.”
Anderson dominated offensive tackle Demontray Jacobs, overpowering him with speed, strength and his repertoire of pass rushing moves. When Vederian Lowe left the game with an injury, Anderson plowed through his replacement, Zach Thomas, for his second sack.
When Maye tried to get rid of the football, Anderson leapt at the line of scrimmage to disrupt the path of the football and it landed in the hands of Murray for an acrobatic interception.
“It’s a blessing, man,” Anderson said. “You’ve just got to keep chopping, man, keep going and getting better and keep working your moves. Don’t be scared to throw more. Keep chopping wood. These guys are tremendous at what they do. It’s a group, and it’s very special and I love those guys.”
The Texans had four turnovers, and they needed them with Maye throwing three touchdown passes.
“Man, that’s the whole thing of this time is to take the ball away,” Anderson said. “That’s something coach has always harped on is you get a lot of turnovers, you turn up and you win the game. That’s something we take personal on this team.”
#Texans Pro Bowl defensive end Will Anderson Jr. @will_anderson28 on career high three sacks @KPRC2 pic.twitter.com/58GMC3rImx
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 13, 2024
Anderson is up to 12 1/2 career sacks, the most of any player from his draft class, and a team-high 5 1/2 sacks after getting close so many times this season with 23 pressures heading into Sunday’s game.
“Oh, man, it was super cool,” quarterback C.J. Stroud said. “I was super happy for him. He’s a dawg, so I’m definitely just proud of him. I know he’s been hunting, you know. He always talks about chopping wood, carrying water, so it’s good for that to pay off finally.”
Between Anderson and Pro Bowl defensive end Danielle Hunter, who forced a fumble on a strip sack, the formidable pass rushing tandem has combined for eight sacks for the 5-1 Texans.
“Man, he’s taught me so much,” Anderson said. “Every time I see him, I give him a big hug. I don’t have any brothers, so all of these guys have been in this group. I look at them as my big brothers. He just kept me composed and kept me grounded these last two weeks. I keep getting better. He kept me on edge: ‘Hey, don’t get lax. When you get lax, your body starts to wind down a little bit. Keep going, keep going.’ And he’s helping me out a lot.”
Aaron Wilson is a Texans and NFL reporter for KPRC 2 and click2houston.com
