It's crazy to think (at least those of us on the older side) that 25 years have passed since the dawn of the 21st Century, yet here we are. And that's the context for ESPN's latest foray into NFL offseason content when there isn't exactly a lot of other news going on.
Ah, yes. The All Quarter Century team. We won't see another one of these until 2050, which means ESPN probably does an All Half Century team instead. OK, fine.
Back to business, ESPN's 25-year all-star team features plenty of San Francisco 49ers, some present and many from the past. In fact, the Niners have seven representatives (six players and one coach) make the full list:
- RB Christian McCaffrey
- FB Kyle Juszczyk
- WR Randy Moss (yes, 2012 was a thing)
- WR Terrell Owens
- OT Trent Williams
- CB Richard Sherman
- OC Kyle Shanahan (as head coach Bill Belichick's assistant)
It's a pretty honorable list. But, without thinking too hard, can you find one glaring omission?
Hopefully.
Hall of Fame linebacker Patrick Willis somehow didn't make the cut on the All Quarter Century team, and it's hard to understand why. Instead, the ESPN panel of analysts included these five:
- Ray Lewis
- Bobby Wagner
- Brian Urlacher
- Luke Kuechly
- Lavonte David
Related story: 50 greatest players in San Francisco 49ers history
Of that bunch, David is the most questionable with respect to Willis. Even ESPN acknowledged the former's three-time first-team All-Pro nods, yet Willis boasted five of those nods.
Perhaps David wins out for longevity, playing since 2012 whereas Willis' career was ultimately cut short by injuries.
Some might also argue Willis deserves a spot over Wagner, too.
Either way, ESPN paid due respect to San Francisco even though a sizable chunk of the last 25 years has been awfully painful for many 49ers fans.
Maybe the first 50 years of the century end up bringing aboard more legends, but we'll have to wait a while to find