Will Anderson Jr. Wins 2023-24 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year Award

Houston Texans defensive end Will Anderson Jr. has won the Associated Press' NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award, as announced during the NFL Honors ceremony in Las Vegas on Thursday.

This year's finalist group featured five talented candidates: Anderson, Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman Jalen Carter, Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon, Los Angeles Rams defensive lineman Kobie Turner and Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr.

Voters were split on Anderson, Carter and Turner for first, but the Texan ultimately won in a close contest:

Anderson, who won the Pro Football Writers of America's Defensive Rookie of the Year award, played an integral role in the Texans going from 3-13-1 in 2022 to 10-7, AFC South champions and playoff winners in 2023. The former Alabama star finished with seven sacks, 45 tackles and 22 quarterback hits.

Anderson was particularly strong down the stretch, notching a pair of sacks in a 22-17 win over the Denver Broncos on Dec. 3 and a 26-3 victory against the Tennessee Titans two weeks later.

He's part of a bright future in Houston, which also features the Associated Press' Offensive Rookie of the Year in quarterback C.J. Stroud.

Carter finished the season with six sacks, nine quarterback hits and 33 tackles. He also recovered a fumble and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown. Carter was a big reason why the Eagles started out 10-1 and found themselves atop the NFC heading into December.

The season didn't end as the Eagles hoped with a 1-5 finish and a loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Wild Card round, but Carter provided hope for a much brighter future as a defensive cornerstone in Philly.

Witherspoon arguably authored the best single-game performance of any defensive player this season during the Seahawks' 24-3 win over the New York Giants.

Not only did Witherspoon amass six solo tackles and two sacks, but he also returned an interception 97 yards for a touchdown. The physical defensive back out of Illinois finished the season with 79 tackles and 16 pass breakups.

Opposing quarterbacks encountered great difficulty when throwing in Porter's direction, completing just 47.6 percent of passes thrown his way, per Pro Football Reference. The son of Steelers great Joey Porter also allowed just one touchdown as well.

Porter ended up playing all 17 games for Pittsburgh, which snuck into the playoffs with a 10-7 record despite scoring the fifth-fewest points in the NFL. The Steelers' sensational defense made up for that result, and Porter played a big role there.

The four aforementioned players were selected in the top 32 of the NFL draft, with Anderson (No. 3), Witherspoon (No. 5) and Carter (No. 9) landing in the top 10. That wasn't the case for a third-round pick in Turner, but he showed why teams made mistakes in passing on him. Turner led all rookies with nine sacks. He also added 16 quarterback hits, 57 tackles (29 solo) and two pass breakups for good measure.

All five players enjoyed impressive rookie seasons worthy of this award. But in the end, Anderson took the honor.