Darrelle Revis said he was first a foremost basketball fan during his childhood, which makes it fitting that he mentioned Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant during his Hall of Fame induction speech.
Revis, a standout cornerback during his playing days, said that fellow Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders did for him what Jordan did for Bryant decades earlier. Jordan served as Bryant's motivation, just as Sanders did for Revis.
"What Jordan is for Kobe, Prime is to Revis Island," Revis said.
Inspired by Jordan, Bryant became one of the best players in NBA history as a five-time NBA champion, a two-time NBA Finals MVP, three-time All-Star Game MVP, 2008 league MVP, and at the time of his retirement the third-leading scoring in league annals.
Following Sanders' example, Revis carved out a career that led to him being only the fifth cornerback to be inducted in his first year of eligibility. Like Sanders (the 1994 Defensive Player of the Year), Revis is considered as one of the greatest defensive backs of all-time.
"As an opponent, we targeted him less than any past defender we've ever played against," Patriots coach Bill Belichick once said of Revis, who won a Super Bowl with Belichick in New England in 2014.