Patrick Willis: Hall of Famer?

I don't think Pro Bowls matter unless you haven't been selected, meaning, I would use it against someone's induction, but probably not for it because it can be very misleading because of injuries, etc...

All-Pro is best player at your position in the league.

 

Hell, Seau only made it one more time than he did.

 

Over/under on number of RecoveringJournalist posts on this thread is now set at 45.5.

 

No doubt. Wasn't it his junior year when he led the SEC in tackles while playing most of the season with a broken hand?

As to your overall take, I agree. In fact, when the movie came out I thought of Willis and how his story could have been a more poignant plot.

 

Take the over.

 

Hall of Famer? Yes, but I had to think about it. To me, it just came down to him being the most dominant player at his position for the entirety of his, albeit brief, career.

 

There are 26 linebackers in the hall. They count a guy like Chris Doleman under linebacker.

Since 1988, they have put in 12.
Ham, Lambert, Singletary, Taylor, Seau, Rickey Jackson and Derrick Brooks were first ballot.
Ted Hendricks, Chris Doleman and Andre Tippett took 2 tries
Derrick Thomas took five tries.
Harry Carson took 7 tries.

 

Jackson was not first ballot.

 

Derrick Brooks, who went in on the first ballot, had the same number of All-Pro selections as Willis.

To be fair, Zach Thomas is also a five-time All-Pro.

 

I always thought Willie Roaf would be the first primarily Saints player to reach Canton. Obviously I was wrong.

I may be taken to the woodshed for saying this but I've sometimes wondered if Jackson was even the best linebacker in that Dome Patrol group.

 

FWIW, Pro Football Reference lists his career as similar to: Randy Gradishar, Jack Lambert*, Greg Lloyd, Pat Swilling, Karl Mecklenburg, Zach Thomas, James Harrison, Bart Scott, Sam Mills, Chad Brown, with Lambert the only HOFer among them.

I would find it hard to put him given A) the relatively short length of his career and, to a much lesser degree, B) the declining emphasis on linebacker as a crucial position on defense, similar to the decline of RBs.

 

The similar players listed through eight seasons include Thomas, Singletary, Ham, Lambert, Seau...