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| Luke Kuechly has all the makings of being the next great middle linebacker. (Credits: Nell Redmond/AP Photo) |
We in sports often, and all too often, look to find a successor for all of our great players. We're doing it right now with LeBron James and Michael Jordan. Sidney Crosby and Wayne Gretzky. Matt Kemp and Ken Griffey Jr. Patrick Willis and Ray Lewis. All those comparisons are realistic in theory, but only in theory. Sports change from generation to generation and it's really hard to compare players 20 years apart, no matter how similar their statistics might be. Different from making direct comparisons, however, we can predict players that may assume the rule of "Best player in league X or in position Y." Luke Kuechly is really starting to remind me of Brian Urlacher, very much so actually.
Urlacher was seen as a contrasting version of Ray Lewis. Lewis was a do-it-all middle linebacker whose playmaking abilities made it seem as he could play outside linebacker. Urlacher was as pure middle linebacker as it came. As a tackle machine, it became quite clear from his Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign that he'd become a bonafide leader for the Bears for a long time. Don't sleep on his playmaking abilities though as he finished with 22 INTs, 11 forced fumbles, 15 fumble recoveries and 3 total defensive TDs in 11 full NFL seasons (missed half of '04 and almost all of '09 with injuries). Although Urlacher's statistics are quite impressive, it was his leadership qualities that separated him from most. He led a top-5-or-better scoring defense in five of his 11 seasons and led the Bears to only their second Super Bowl in franchise history. If it wasn't for the greatest linebacker of all-time being a part of his generation, Urlacher would've been the best linebacker of the 2000s.
With the ninth overall pick last year the Panthers selected the highly touted Luke Kuechly out of Boston College. Sure, scouts were gushing over Kuechly's size, instincts and leadership qualities, but it was still Boston College. The BC-product left college with 532 tackles 13 short of the FBS record and an undoubted amount of talent. That talent was seen from the get-go.
Playing on one of the lesser defensive units in the league last season didn't stop Kuechly from grabbing the Defensive Rookie of the Year award much like his predecessor Urlacher. He notched a league leading 164 combined tackles, along with two picks and three fumble recoveries. But most importantly he lived up to his reputation as a leader, taking over for the Dan Morgans and Jon Beasons before him in even more impressive fashion. Sure, the Panthers defense wasn't going to rewrite records last year, but Kuechly definitely had the look and the feel of a long-time stud linebacker.
I get that it's preseason and it really doesn't matter, but watching him on Monday night vs. the Ravens was one of those "Wow, this guy is dominant" moments. He was literally all over the field and every time the Panthers defense made a play it was of Kuechly's doing. Some guys just have a knack for getting to the football and he's certainly one of them.
Good linebackers can go unnoticed on the field, but great linebackers are always noticed on the field. Kuechly's hard to miss.
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