Patrick Willis: We trust 'crazy' Harbaugh on QB choice

• Niners LB Patrick Willis has reconnected with his father after a rough childhood
• The defensive star is thankful for many things -- including his grandma's recipe for raccoon
• Willis' reaction to Jim Harbaugh returning to practice the same day after a heart incident: 'Coach, you're crazy'

Patrick Willis' childhood was rough at times, with his biological father battling addiction and Willis serving as a pseudo-father to younger siblings while finding jobs as young as age 13 to support himself and the family.

These days, with financial security, perennial success in the NFL and an improving relationship with his father, the San Francisco 49ers linebacker is certainly grateful this weekend.

"Thanksgiving, that's a very special time for me. I'm very thankful for where I've been, where I've come from and where I am now," Willis told USA TODAY Sports by phone after practice on Thursday. "I give all the praise and glory to God for that. I'm thankful for my teammates and family, my fiancée ... and I could just go on and on and on. I'm truly thankful."

Willis is also thankful for a competitive coach in Jim Harbaugh who is "crazy" enough to return to the team's facility the same day he had a procedure to correct an irregular heartbeat, a young player in Colin Kaepernick, who turned in an "amazing" performance in a victory against the Chicago Bears to spark a quarterback controversy with Alex Smith, and a talented pass-rusher in Aldon Smith, who sort of predicted his 5½-sack game against the Bears.

Willis discusses all of these in this week's USA TODAY Sports NFL Q&A -- beginning with the unique menu of his childhood Thanksgivings:

What were Thanksgivings like for you growing up?

My grandmother, my auntie, my uncle, my daddy and everybody would cook some food, we'd go to my grandmother's and just eat away. We had some of the best dishes a man could have: brown beans, chitlins, raccoon, deer, chicken, neck bone, greens. You name it, soul-food-wise, we had it. Banana pudding, pecan pie, it just went on and on and on.

I think we have a bad connection. I heard you say you had raccoon.

Yeah, raccoon. Deer meat. Opossum.

I had no idea you could eat raccoon.

Yeah, you can eat raccoon. You can eat opossum, too. Raccoon, it's a wild animal, so the meat's going to be a little tangy. You have to know what wild meat tastes like to know what the wild tastes like. My grandmother, she knew how to season it really well and put those rosemary stems in there and they kind of took out some of the wild taste in the meat. It tasted good to me.

Speaking of eating, how do you keep Aldon Smith hungry after a game like he had Monday?

It's within yourself to stay hungry, and what I mean by that is you go from having the year he had last year (14 sacks) to having the year he's having this year (15 sacks) and then to have the game he had on Monday night, you say to yourself, 'What do you want to be remembered by? Do you want to be remembered as the guy who had five sacks in one game or a guy that can go out at any point in a game and take over, to have as many sacks as you want?' It's within yourself. That's what keeps you hungry.

You say any of that to him?

No, but before the game, I said, 'Aldon, man, I'm feeling good, I'm feeling good about this game. I think I'm gonna go off tonight.' He said, 'All right, Patrick, let me see it then. And you know what, I'll be right there with you.' And to just see what he did was remarkable. The guys here, we have a way of making a guy feel special after an accomplishment, but at the same time letting him know it does no good if you go back the next week and have zero (sacks). Around here, we have humble hearts and that's what makes this locker room fun to be around.

We've been hearing so much about your offense lately. Is that defense getting jealous of the attention?

Nah, nah, nah, we're not jealous. We're a team and Coach tells us all the time around here, the concept is the team, the team, the team. We want to see others do good and give the credit to the individual athlete and the team. We like it, we like to have the offense behind the defense, behind the special teams because when we have all three phases clicking, that means you have some good stuff going in your favor.

What'd you think of that young quarterback of yours?

He played extremely well, extremely well. He came out on a big stage and did what a lot of guys couldn't, what a lot of guys who have been playing for a long time have a hard time doing. He came out and was able to have a game like that and credit goes to our offensive line and the receivers for doing what they do. They went out there and allowed him to just play. He played, and it was amazing.

You're this late into a season that could be setting up for a Super Bowl run. What do you think about possibly handing the reins over to a new quarterback?

I try not to get caught up in all of that. I try to only control what I can control, and that's playing on the defensive side of the ball and making sure our guys are ready to go. Whoever is the starting quarterback on Sunday, we're going to be behind him 100%. But as far as saying one or the other, we're just going to support whoever is the quarterback.

Did you see it coming, that he could just step right in and play like that?

Coach does a great job of preparing those guys at the quarterback position. I mean, they maintain great pride in it. They're the first guys out and the last to leave the practice field. You could put (third-string quarterback Scott) Tolzien out there and I'd put money he could do some things really, really well also. Coach Harbaugh and the quarterbacks coach, they do a good job of making sure those guys are ready, and that showed Monday night.

What impressed you most about Kaepernick, whether on the field or off, this week?

Just his mind-set to just say, 'This is what I know how to do, this is what I've done all my life and this is why I'm here, to go out and play.' He practices hard and works out hard every day, so it was no surprise when he had a chance to play that he played as well as he did.

Did you guys go into that game against the Bears wanting to prove which was the better defense?

People all week had talked bad about us or said this about us and how we're not this and not that. We've still got some games to go and it's all about consistency. It does no good to have the game we had Monday night and come out Sunday and not play well at all. For us, it's just about being better the next week than the week before. Going out and playing football, we let the stats and everything take care of themselves. For us, it's about keeping points off the board and playing lights out.

What was the reaction when Harbaugh was taken to the hospital last week?

It was bad seeing that happen and hearing about it, but at the same time, he's a tough cookie. We knew he was going to be all right and bounce back strong.

What'd you say to him when he came back to practice that same day?

I just said, 'Coach, you're crazy, but we love having you here. We're glad you're back and feeling good.' He's a true competitor and loves being around us. That's what keeps him younger.