It’s always an honor to be compared to the best players in your sport, but to be compared to one of the all-time greats in another sport is even higher praise. Patrick Willis has joined that club as his coach compared him to baseball legend Willie Mays this week.
Willis, a four-time Pro Bowl linebacker with the 49ers, was honored as NFC Defensive Player of the Week this week, as he recorded 18 tackles and a fumble recovery to lead the 49ers defense in a win over the Buccaneers 48-3.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh said, “To me, five facets of baseball, Willie Mays is the greatest of all time. Patrick Willis has the chance to be one of the all-time great linebackers.”
Harbaugh explained his view, “I compare it to baseball in some ways. The five facets of being a great baseball player: hit for power, hit for average, catch, run, throw; be able to do those five things at an elite level.”
“Patrick, as a linebacker, played downhill as a linebacker, number one, to be able to drop into coverage, be active and good in the coverage. Be able to tackle in open space, be able to blitz strong with tempo, and also be able to run from sideline to sideline with the agility and the speed to do that and make plays.”
That is pretty high praise indeed. Willis is one of the best linebackers in the game right now, and may be the best at fulfilling all of those roles effectively. He has a rare combination of speed, power and athleticism to fulfill all those roles.
Asked to compare him to someone who plays the same position, Harbaugh didn’t back off of making the comparison to Ravens 12-time Pro Bowl linebacker Ray Lewis, “I believe he’s got a chance to be, yes, like Ray, one of the all-time greats.”
