Seahawks 90-Man Countdown: DE MJ Anderson - Dark Horse in the Interior?

Competing in a new-look position group with plenty of question marks, MJ Anderson may be a viable contender to push for a roster spot with the Seattle Seahawks after a breakthrough season at Iowa State.

Author:
Corbin K. Smith
Publish date:
Jun 12, 2023 1:37 PM EDT

In this story:

Seattle Seahawks

With the calendar flipping to June and offseason activities well underway league-wide, the Seattle Seahawks will open training camp at the VMAC in less than two months, officially ushering in the 2023 season.

To celebrate the new incoming season, I will be detailing every member of the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, exploring best and worst case scenarios and what to expect from each player entering the 2023 campaign.

MJ Anderson, Defensive End

Height/Weight: 6-3, 273 pounds

2022 Stats*: 37 tackles, 3.5 sacks, nine tackles for loss

*College stats at Iowa State

Choosing Minnesota over several other Power 5 programs, Anderson redshirted in 2019 before seeing limited with the program in 2020 and 2021. In two seasons with the Golden Gophers, he appeared in 15 games, registering eight tackles, one sack, and one tackle for loss. Seeking a fresh start, he transferred to Iowa State after his redshirt sophomore season and made an instant impact, setting career-highs in tackles, sacks, and tackles for loss, earning Honorable Mention All-Big 12 honors.

Despite having one year of eligibility remaining to further improve his stock, Anderson decided to forgo a second season in Ames and declared as an early entrant for the NFL Draft. Not hearing his name called in April, he signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent.

Best-Case Scenario: Building off a strong lone season with the Cyclones and playing at a position of need for the Seahawks revamped defensive line, Anderson impresses as a 3-4 defensive end using heavy hands and physicality during training camp and the preseason to earn a surprising spot on the initial 53-man roster.

Worst-Case Scenario: Coming into the NFL with limited experience, Anderson can't get up to speed quick enough with average athletic traits to see many snaps in August, leading to his release without being signed to Seattle's practice squad.

What to Expect in 2023: Though he's a bit on the lighter side for a 3-4 defensive end at under 275 pounds and isn't a great athlete for the position, Anderson plays with enough pop behind his pads and effort in the trenches to be a worthy competitor for snaps behind Dre'Mont Jones and Jarran Reed. As demonstrated in his one season at Iowa State, once he finally got a chance to play, he proved to be surprisingly disruptive even without much sack and pass rushing production.

With Myles Adams returning and fifth-round pick Mike Morris drawing praise throughout the offseason program, Anderson may have a tough time cracking the interior defensive line rotation from the outset. But if he can perform well in camp and exhibition games against NFL competition, he has enough tools and potential upside to be worth stashing on the practice squad as an insurance policy.

Previous Seahawks 90-Man Profiles