From ESPN's Matt Mosley
Editor's note: Our two-week series, "The Best," looks at the NFL's best in a number of key categories.
Best Rookie:
Patrick Willis, LB, San Francisco. Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson may be the most talented rookie we've seen in years, but the rookie who will have the best season in 2007 is Willis. After watching him from afar in college and now talking to his coaches, I think Willis has a shot at being this season's DeMeco Ryans, who had 155 tackles for the Texans in 2006 and was named rookie defensive player of the year. 
Willis will start immediately at inside linebacker, and his Hall of Fame position coach Mike Singletary says he has the potential to be the best we've seen in the last 20 years. Willis combines excellent speed (4.5) and intelligence. He managed to become one of the top linebackers in the nation at Ole Miss even while having to care for several family members. The one thing we have to find out is whether he has the strength to take on massive linemen in the middle of the field, but Singletary believes Willis could be a Brian Urlacher-type player. Head coach Mike Nolan is anxious to see what Willis can do now that he's able to simply concentrate on football.
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