Steelers coach Mike Tomlin knew Pittsburgh would have no chance to draft Will Anderson. The two-time consensus All-American would be long gone when the Steelers made their first pick at No. 14 on April 27.

But when the NFL team’s scouting personnel came to Alabama’s pro day in March, Tomlin still invited Anderson to join other Crimson Tide draft prospects for dinner with the Steelers.

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Tomlin and Anderson will meet again on Sunday when Pittsburgh visits the Houston Texans.

The Texans engineered a trade to choose Anderson at No. 3 immediately after they’d used their No. 2 pick on Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud in the 2023 NFL Draft.

“Man, love Will Anderson,” Tomlin said on Tuesday. “Really talented guy. We go to Tuscaloosa the night before the pro day, we invite guys to dinner, and oftentimes a guy in Will Anderson’s position turns us down, respectfully, on that dinner invite. He realizes the pick that we had and where he was projected to go.

“Man, he came to dinner. He sat to my left, and we talked ball all night. Engaged, loves football, got a desire to be great. Asked awesome questions for a guy in that position. Passionate about the game. It just showed through, so I’m not surprised by what I’m seeing from him. …

“When I see passion for the game and energy for the game and intellectual development and seeking the knowledge and some of that stuff, that’s the thing that makes freakish talent turn into freakish play, so I’m not surprised with the success that he’s having based on my experience with him.”

Anderson has started at defensive end in all three of Houston’s games his season. He collected his first NFL sack when he took down Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson in the Texans’ season-opening game, and he’s had 13 tackles, one tackle for loss and five quarterback hits in 2023.

“What Will does on the field is why we drafted him,” Houston coach DeMeco Ryans said on Monday. “He’s a consistent player. He plays with an edge, a relentless mindset every single day whether it’s practice, whether it’s a game and that’s why it’s important to add him to what we’re trying to build here, and he represents everything that I believe in in how you play football.

“He plays the game the right way. He plays it with an edge, with intensity and it means a lot to him. That’s why he’s one of our leaders because he proves it just by how he works every single day. And for us to take the next step as an organization as a football team, I want 53 guys who play like Will Anderson.”

In Houston’s 37-17 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, Anderson also burst through the line to block a 51-yard field-goal attempt. He became the first rookie to block a field goal for the Texans since J.J. Watt in 2011.

Anderson’s block put Houston on Jacksonville’s 41-yard line, and the Texans offense turned the field position into a touchdown for a 14-0 lead with 7:27 left in the first half.

“I think it just goes back to the preparation that we did all week,” Anderson said. “(Special-teams coordinator) Frank (Ross) had a really good game plan for us this week on how we wanted to attack field-goal block, and I think we had a really good week of preparation of simulating what we was going to do in the game, so when it came down to the field-goal block, I think everybody just doing their job executing what he called, I think that’s how it happened.”

The Steelers and the Texans square off at noon CDT Sunday at NRG Stadium in Houston.

Pittsburgh has a 2-1 record after defeating the Las Vegas Raiders 23-18 on Sunday night. The victory was the 165th as an NFL head coach for Tomlin, the 16th-most in NFL history.

The Texans’ victory over the Jaguars on Sunday was Ryans’ first as an NFL head coach. Like Anderson, Ryans is a former Alabama All-American.

“Can’t say enough about DeMeco and what he’s doing, the foundation that he’s laying,” Tomlin said. “I see it. It is tangible. They’re a fundamental group. They play hard. They don’t make a lot of mistakes. They don’t kick their own butt. And they’re growing every tape you put on in all three phases of the game.”

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.