Will Anderson Jr. has seen plenty throughout the early stages of OTAs, but the Houston Texans All-Pro defensive end made sure to comment on the progression of the offense headlined by fourth-year starting quarterback C.J. Stroud.
“C.J. has really taken that step of watching the clock, getting the guys lined up, moving with urgency,” Anderson said Tuesday following OTAs. “But he’s been the commander back there. He’s taken that step as a leader back there to get everybody lined up, to take the initiative, like ‘Let’s go’. Everybody is rallying behind him.”
Everything that could derail a postseason run for the Texans relies on the offensive side. Nine starters from the No. 1-ranked defense last fall return to NRG Drive this season, plus the welcomed additions of Reed Blankenship and Kayden McDonald via the NFL draft.
Houston completely reinvented its offensive line, including going after new linemen like Wyatt Teller, Braden Smith and Keylan Rutledge. Stroud should have more time in the backfield to feel comfortable with the pass coverage in front of him. Anderson and notice it, too.
“I laughed the other day. I said, ‘Man, it’s going to be a fun training camp,’ because you can see the anticipation of everybody getting out there,” Anderson said. “It’s going to be one of those where it’s going to be a battle every single day, like the physicality on the edges has upped big time with Foster [Moreau] coming in as a tight end. All of those things that they’ve been working on, they’ve been doing a really good job of that.”
The Texans return to practice on Thursday in front of the media.
This article originally appeared on Texans Wire: Will Anderson sees new spark in Texans’ offense during early stages of OTAs
Reporting by Cole Thompson, Texans Wire / Texans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Cole Thompson, Texans Wire | USA TODAY Network
