And then there’s Henry Anderson, the best old school 3-4 defensive end prospect I’ve ever seen. First of all, the job of the 3-4 end is one of the hardest in football. It’s less common in the NFL today, but they are often asked to be a two gap defensive linemen. That means that, in Anderson’s case, he’s asked to prevent successful running plays in both the B gap and the C gap. Controlling two gaps is hard. You need incredibly long arms and strength to make arm tackles on both sides of the linemen, as well as incredible instincts to see the running back moving in front of you. Another interesting aspect is that the 2 gap linemen shouldn’t be behind the line of scrimmage against the run. If Anderson, for example, penetrates the line through the C gap, the running back will simply run through the B gap, so TFL’s usually are an indicator of a guy who is not doing his job. Other than sacks, the only reason a 3-4 end should get a TFL is on certain run blitzes. It’s not a glamorous job (and that’s why Albert Haynesworth hated it), but it’s an important one. Anderson is so good that he actually gets TFL’s since he simply can push his tackle back behind the line of scrimmage and then begin to act like a normal two gap linemen. He follows his assignment because he does not shed his block but simply pushes the block behind the line of scrimmage so no matter what gap the running back chooses he’ll run right into an arm tackle. It’s pretty incredible. He has ideal length at 6’6, phenomenal strength (anecdotal evidence: with his stomach on the ground, Anderson grabbed Kenjon Barner’s jersey and wouldn’t let go. He simply laid on the field. Barner=Boat, Anderson=Anchor, and Barner fell to the ground), great discipline, good instincts, good fundamentals, everything you could ask for in a 3-4 end.
