Will Anderson reflects on his journey of preparing for 2023 NFL Draft

The 2023 NFL Draft is just a few days away, meaning that the dreams of former Alabama EDGE Will Anderson will soon come true. ‘The Terminator’ is regarded as one of the top prospects of this year’s draft, projected to be selected near the top of the first round. Anderson spoke with ESPN’s Sage Steele on ‘SportsCenter’ and discussed his preparation following his final season at Alabama leading into the big day on Thursday.

“Everything’s been going good,” Anderson said. “I had like three top-30 visits, so I really got a lot of time to just focus on my body, get healthy, train, and also just spend some time with my family but keep crafting at what I want to get better at.”

Anderson’s workload has likely slowed down as the draft nears, but that wasn’t always the case. As he specifically spoke about preparation that went into the NFL Combine that took place in early March.

“The combine process, it’s a type of different process. You’ve got like a month to get in the best shape of your life and get ready to go out there and move fluent and smooth. But the process has been really great, meeting with teams has been good, I can’t complain so I’m blessed,” Anderson said.

Footage of Anderson participating in the combine appeared while he was discussing his preparation, creating a noticeable reaction causing him to smile, which he also explained.

“Because it’s just so much,” Anderson said. Okay so my combine process is just so much that went into play with it and it was just a whole lot of conversation that had to be had. And betting on myself and going out there saying I want to compete, and I want to go have fun, and I want to show the world and the coaches and the people in the NFL that I’m capable of going out there and participating and doing outside linebacker and linebacker drills. So it was fun.”

Anderson measured in at 6-foot-3.5, 253 pounds at the combine and put on a show. He ran a 4.6-second 40-yard dash and participated in the field drills, showing off his size, speed, and strength to NFL’s top decision-makers. NFL’s Nex Gen Stats Score Breakdown gave Anderson a 90 prospect score based on his production and athleticism displayed at the combine, ranking first among all EDGE players at the combine.

The NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday, April 27 at 8:00 p.m. ET in an evening where Anderson will likely hear his name called sooner than later.