49ers’ Willis is quickly making a name for himself

By Jeff Dickinson  |   Wednesday, June 04, 2008  |  Comments( 3 )

San Francisco 49ers
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When you think of the NFL’s best linebackers, there are a few names that immediately jump to the top of the list.

Ray Lewis of the Baltimore Ravens has been one of the league’s most dominant linebackers for the past decade. Brian Urlacher of the Bears is another name that is among the cream of the linebacking crop, following in the footsteps of past Bear greats like Mike Singletary and Dick Butkus. Finally, San Diego’s Shawne Merriman has proven in recent years that he merits mention among the elite at his position.

And though he has only been in the NFL for one season, there is another name that is destined to be in that same group of linebacking greats. That's the San Francisco 49ers' Patrick Willis, an All-Pro who demonstrated as a rookie that he was more than worth the 11th pick in the 2007 draft.

Is Willis, however, ready to be mentioned with the league's premier LBs? If last season is any indication, you bet he is.

Just how dominant was the 6-foot-2 Willis? He led the 49ers with 174 total tackles. In case that still doesn’t impress you, Willis also led the NFL in that category. He didn’t just have more tackles than any other linebacker in the NFL, he had more than any other defensive player.

And in case you still need some proof of Willis’ worth, he clearly outdistanced some of his more famous linebacking stalwarts. Lewis also led his team in total tackles, but he had 54 fewer than Willis. Urlacher was the leading tackler for the Bears last season, but he had 51 fewer tackles than Willis. Merriman finished with 106 fewer tackles than Willis, although he did have 12.5 sacks compared to four for Willis.

The point is that Willis didn’t just have a solid rookie season for the 49ers; rather, he had an amazing season. Willis finished with more solo tackles (136) than the combination of Lewis, Urlacher and Merriman tallied. That is a testament to Willis’ speed, athleticism and nose for the ball.

The closest linebacker in the NFL last season to Willis’ 174 total tackles was still pretty far away. Denver’s D.J. Williams finished the season with 141 total tackles. That means that Willis averaged just over two tackles per game more than Williams.

That’s not bad for a 23-year-old kid from the little town of Bruceton, Tenn., with a population of 1,554. Willis’ early success shouldn’t come as a surprise, though. After all, he is the only athlete in the history of Tennessee high school sports to be nominated for the state’s Mr. Football Award as a linebacker and as a tailback in the same season. He also won the 2006 Butkus Award as the nation’s top linebacker his senior season at Ole Miss.

With his 2007 AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award, Willis has set the tone for a bright future. He is on course to join some of the other great 49ers linebackers like Dave Wilcox, Charles Haley, Ken Norton, Jr. and Julian Peterson. In fact, if Willis keeps up this kind of pace, a college linebacker 25 years from now might just win the Willis Award.
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About Jeff Dickinson

I have been writing and editing professionally for 18 years. I spent the first three years of my career as a sportswriter for a daily newspaper in Alabama and got to cover sports and get paid for it! It was great until I got married and then it wasn't too much fun being away from my wife every...
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