Patrick Willis Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame

This is overdue.

Legendary 49ers linebacker Patrick Willis has been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Willis is the best linebacker of his generation and one of the best linebackers ever, but he retired at 30, so he wasn't a first ballot Hall of Famer as he should have been. But now that's history.

Willis joins Dwight Freeney, Julius Peppers, Devin Hester, Andre Johnson and Randy Gradishar in the Hall of Fame class of 2024.

"Congratulations to Patrick Willis on his well-deserved honor of being elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame," 49ers ownership said in a written statement. "Willis has cemented his legacy as one of the greatest linebackers in NFL history. He set a standard of excellence and provided exemplary leadership for his teammates. His grit and passion for the game anchored our defense and elevated everyone around him. We join the 49ers Faithful in celebrating Willis as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024.”

The best description of Willis I've ever heard came from his former head coach Jim Harbaugh roughly 10 years ago when Harbaugh called him the Willie Mays of linebackers. Mays was one of the original five-tool players, which means he could do everything a baseball player could do, and he could do them all at a high level. That's Willis. He's one of the fastest, most violent, most productive linebackers ever, and he played on some elite defenses, and he always was the best player on his team.

Congratulations, Patrick.