Houston Texans Will Anderson Jr. named AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year

HOUSTON - Houston Texans Defensive End Will Anderson Jr. is your Associated Press NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year!

Anderson's accomplishment was announced at the NFL Honors on Thursday night.

RELATED: Houston Texans CJ Stroud named AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year

He is the third player in the Texans franchise history to receive the honor. The past two players to have received the honor were current head coach DeMeco Ryans in 2006 and Brian Cushing in 2009.

Anderson was selected third overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - FEBRUARY 08: Will Anderson Jr. attends the 13th Annual NFL Honors at Resorts World Theatre on February 08, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)

In his 13 games with the team, he had 45 tackles including 10 tackles for loss, 67 pressures, 7 sacks, one pass defense, and one blocked field goal, according to the Texans.

He set a franchise record of having the most sacks by a rookie in a single season, the team announced, and his pressures led all rookies in the NFL for the year.

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Anderson was named to the 2023 Pro Bowl along with Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud. He is the second defensive rookie in team history to be named to the Pro Bowl.