Alabama football: 3 major award candidates for the Crimson Tide in 2022
By John Buhler
2. 829. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. EDGE. Alabama Crimson Tide. Will Anderson. player
Will Anderson has to be the favorite to win the Bednarik during his junior season
Will Anderson may be the first non-quarterback taken in the 2023 NFL Draft. He would have been the first player selected last spring had he been draft eligible. While he is already a national champion from his freshman season at Alabama, last year’s unanimous All-American and Nagurski winner missed out on the best prize for a defender: The Bednarik. It is his for the taking.
What hurt Anderson a year ago was that he did not play on an all-time great defense like the guy who may have robbed him of the honor in Georgia’s defensive tackle Jordan Davis. Frankly, Anderson probably should have won it. At the very least, he should have been the fifth player invited to the Heisman Trophy ceremony. He is that type of a defensive star for the Crimson Tide.
For college football fans who were not lucky enough to watch the late Derrick Thomas terrorize quarterbacks for the Crimson Tide, Anderson may be the closest approximation to him we have seen in the last 30 years. Sadly, the man is destined to play for NFL cannon fodder such as the hapless Houston Texans and those always crap-tastic Atlanta Falcons. Anderson is elite, alright.
You can bet on the field for someone else to win the Bednarik over him, but you will lose money.