49ers legend Patrick Willis hoping its fifth time lucky for Hall of Fame
Patrick Willis unquestionably has a Hall of Fame resume, but as yet the San Francisco 49ers legend is still waiting for enshrinement into Canton. Willis is entering his fifth year of eligibility for the Hall of Fame, having been passed over four times. The 49ers linebacker has twice been a finalist, missing out at the […]
Patrick Willis unquestionably has a Hall of Fame resume, but as yet the San Francisco 49ers legend is still waiting for enshrinement into Canton.
Willis is entering his fifth year of eligibility for the Hall of Fame, having been passed over four times.
The 49ers linebacker has twice been a finalist, missing out at the final hurdle last year, but he is once again in the mix to receive a gold jacket in 2024.
Willis was on Tuesday named among the 25 modern era semifinalists for the 2024 class.
That group will be trimmed down to 15, with the number of finalists then swelled to 19 by the addition of Buddy Parker, the recommended nominee of the Hall of Fame's Coach/Contributor Committee and three nominees from the Seniors Committee, Randy Gradishar, Steve McMichael and Art Powell.
The 2024 class with be selected from that group ahead of Super Bowl 58 in Las Vegas in February.
On the surface, Willis has an excellent case as a five-time first-team All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler who made the 2010s All-Decade team. He was the premier linebacker in the game from 2007 to 2013, but a lack of longevity is the knock against him, Willis having retired following the 2014 season.
Another former 49er on the list is running back Ricky Watters, a member of the 49ers' 1994 Super Bowl-winning team. Watters was a five-time Pro Bowler who, across stints with San Francisco, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Seattle Seahawks, racked up at least 1,200 yards from scrimmage in all but one of his 10 NFL seasons.
Anquan Boldin is not as well known for his time with the 49ers, but will have plenty of support for his cause after a productive if brief spell with San Francisco. Boldin is a semifinalist for the third time.
He was part of the Baltimore Ravens team that beat the 49ers in Super Bowl 47 at the end of the 2012 season but then spent the next three years with San Francisco, helping the Niners to the NFC Championship Game in the following campaign as a teammate of Willis.
Boldin tallied 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his first two seasons with San Francisco. However, of the three former Niners on the list, it is one of their greatest ever defenders who would appear to be in the best spot to finally gain enshrinement.
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