Cincinnati Bengals supporters have been fighting for increased recognition for their team greats for a very long time. Willie Anderson, a former right tackle and one of the greatest in NFL history, is the player currently on the roster.
Anderson is now on the Pro Football Hall of Fame Modern Era balloting list of finalists. He has reached this voting stage for the third season in a row.
Since there weren’t enough pass rushers to challenge the right tackle, most front offices prioritised right tackles who were more run-oriented, hence Anderson was ahead of his time. To get in the quarterback’s face rather than simply his blindside, teams began to switch to having pass rushers move around or get two pass rushers during Anderson’s career.
Towards the end of his playing career, Pro Football Focus became a more widely used analytical metric to try and quantify an offensive lineman’s skill. Of the right tackles they have charted, he remains one of the best players.
After playing with the Bengals for 12 seasons, Anderson played one season as a Raven in 2008. Between 2004 and 2006, he spent three consecutive seasons as a first-team all-pro. Throughout his career, he started 184 games.
