2023 NFL Draft Profile: Alabama Linebacker Will Anderson Jr.

BamaCentral is taking a long look at each of the Crimson Tide's 15 football prospects who could hear their names called during the 2023 NFL Draft in Kansas City on April 27-29.

Will Anderson Jr. left Alabama not just as an Alabama Crimson Tide favorite, but pretty much beloved by the fan base and more. 

Yes, even by the media. He was easily the best quote on the team for the past couple of years, if not his entire career with the Crimson Tide. 

Anderson might be the best prospect on the board in most NFL draft war rooms. At 6’4, two hundred forty three pounds, Anderson is the linebacker/edge rusher every team would want.

Just some teams need a quarterback ...  

From the very beginning at Alabama, Anderson made an immediate impact, with the season opener making three tackles and three quarterback pressures. During his second season with the Crimson Tide, Anderson was named the top defensive player in college football and was unanimous All-American. 

In his conference, the SEC, he was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. He led the entire nation in tackles for loss while also individually totaling seventeen and a half sacks and one hundred and two tackles total. 

He was also a team captain. It doesn't hurt that he played in the Sugar Bowl, and showed up and ran drills at the NFL combine when he really didn't have to. 

Anderson can convert speed to power and is also a twitch athlete with great speed.

Simply put, he will be a linebacker who will make an immediate impact in the NFL.

Alabama Linebacker Will Anderson Jr.

NFL Combine/Workout Details

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

No. 31
Position: Edge rusher
Height: 6-3 1/2
Weightt: 253
Arm: 33 7/8’’
Hand: 9 7/8’’

DOB: 9/2/2001
Hometown: Hampton, Ga.
High School: Dutchtown

40-Yard Dash: 4.6 seconds
10-Yard Split: 1.61

What They're Saying About Will Anderson Jr.

Gary Cosby Jr.-USA TODAY Sports

Lance Zierlein, NFL.com: "Three-year starter for vaunted Alabama program with eye-popping production that encapsulates his potential impact. Anderson is well-built with long arms. He has the rush get-off and skill level to consistently shave edges or pry open rush paths with inside moves. Even when he’s blocked around the arc or on the diagonal, Anderson’s footwork, cornering and closing speed help him dive into the pocket. There is room for more growth with hand usage and he will need to prove he can keep racking up the sack totals outside of Nick Saban’s scheme. Anderson is suited to a 3-4 front, where he can play wider to better allow his length to overcome size deficiencies at the point of attack. His traits, athleticism and production against high-level competition are indicators of a Pro Bowl future."

NFL Draft Bilble: The consensus number one prospect in the nation, there are few flaws in Anderson’s overall game. He is one of the most twitchy and fastest pass-rushers that we’ve seen come off the edge in quite some time. His ability to convert speed to power, along with his bend and athleticism, enables him to use an array of moves to get to the quarterback. Piling up 17.5 sacks in the SEC as Anderson did a year ago will draw lots of attention but one of the more underrated aspects of his game is to play containment and set the edge in the run game as well (101 tackles in 2021, including 31 tackles for loss). He possesses highly active hands, which shows up on film, as he gets his mittens on a lot of tipped balls. A generational talent, Anderson would appear to be in line for another dominant season, as he continues to state his case to be the top overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft.

SI: "If you’re looking for some comps, I’ve gotten T.J. Watt, Kayvon Thibodeaux and Melvin Ingram on Anderson, which means he’s got a chance to be an incredibly productive, long-term answer as an edge rusher to build a defensive front around." — Albert Breer 

BamaCentral Analysis

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

An anonymous NFL executive from an NFL team told NFL.com: “Power Five players with traits who get sacks in college are going to get sacks in the pros. Anderson is way more likely to succeed than any of these quarterbacks (in the draft). It’s not even close.” We really can't argue that point. Maybe because we can still remember how Andrew Wadsworth only played 36 games after being the third-overall pick in the 1998 draft that we're kind of hoping Anderson doesn't get picked in the same spot by the Cardinals, but he's easily a top-five selection.

Projection: Top-five pick, possible top three. 

Alabama Athletics

This is the first story in an annual series profiling Alabama players available in the upcoming NFL draft.

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