Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said he sensed that Will Anderson Jr. was about to pop off Sunday against the New England Patriots.
“I felt his mindset in pregame warmups,” Ryans said following a 41-21 victory at Gillette Stadium. “So, knew it was going to be a really good day for him.”
Ryans was right. Now, the NFL is taking notice.
Anderson was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in Week 6, the league office announced Wednesday. The reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year earned his first career Player of the Week honor after racking up three sacks against rookie quarterback Drake Maye.
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“Massive game for him, to be able to get after the quarterback the way he did,” Ryans said. “Just a reall productive day by him, and he stayed after it. I loved his energy from start to finish.”
Sacks were the headline of Anderson’s performance in Foxborough, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. The former No. 3 overall pick finished with eight tackles, including four tackles for loss and added one pass breakup, which led to an Eric Murray interception.
His sacks and tackles for loss both ranked first across the NFL last week, while his tackles led the team and tied for the most among defensive linemen league-wide. Entering Week 7, Anderson leads the NFL with nine tackles for loss and ranks fifth in sacks with seven.
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Anderson’s honor marks the second time this season and the ninth occurrence in franchise history a Texan has been named Player of the Week in back-to-back weeks. The accolade stands as the 60th time a Texan has been named Player of the Week and the 21st time a defensive player has garnered the honor.
Houston has now claimed Player of the Week honors in four of its first six weeks, the most in the NFL and most in team history through Week 6.