In the NFL, it’s easy to see when players make a massive leap from year to year.
Drake Maye going from talented rookie to MVP front-runner; Jaxson Smith-Njigba’s ascension from 1,000-yard receiver to a 2,000-yard pace; Daniel Jones’s transition from a castoff to a leader of one of the NFL’s best offenses — those jumps are obvious, happening in plain sight.
It’s easier to miss the subtler examples of players leveling up, like a player going from the Pro Bowl to a game-wrecking force and one of the real superheroes at his position.
That’s precisely what’s happened to Will Anderson Jr. this season.
The Texans’ defensive end had a great sophomore season in 2024: 60 pressures, 11 sacks, 16 tackles for loss — all for one of the best defenses in the league. No one would argue that Anderson wasn’t a good player. He was the Defensive Rookie of the Year.
But through the first half of the 2025 season, Anderson has been something … different. In a world where Myles Garrett and Micah Parsons exist, Anderson has a real claim as the most disruptive, impactful pass rusher in football. And that is new territory, even for a player with Anderson’s pedigree.
Digging into Anderson’s film from last year, you see a player fulfilling most of the expectations that he brought into the league as a historically lauded college player and a prospect the Texans felt comfortable trading a future first-round pick for the right to draft.
But how has he leveled up again this year? The above video breaks it down.
For more in-depth film breakdowns, subscribe to The Athletic YouTube channel or The Athletic Football Show channel. Robert Mays, Chase Daniel and Derrik Klassen are providing weekly breakdowns throughout the season, ranging from quarterback analysis and X’s and O’s breakdowns of key moments in tight games to bigger-picture looks at how teams have reshaped their identities mid-season.
Nov 20, 2025
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