Why so little love for London Fletcher?

by JMP on Jan 10, 2012 1:30 AM EST

London Fletcher is now slated to go to the Pro Bowl. He is headed there for the third time as an injury replacement. He is replacing Brian Urlacher for the second time.

I'm asking for some opinions, so please discuss in the comments section. Why is there no love for him. This year he led the NFL in tackles but wasn't voted in. Do people always pick the familiar names? He flies way too far under the radar. He was a great player for Buffalo, and he was pretty good in St. Louis. To top it off, Buffalo was mildly competitive during his tenure here. We actually had a pretty good defense.

Finally, at the end of his career, he is getting some Pro Bowl love-- but not by being voted in.

Just another great fan opinion shared on the pages of BuffaloRumblings.com.

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Yeah, he got snubbed

If you have a decent season, and have a familiar name, you go to the pro bowl. You don’t have to have the best statistical season in order to go it.

It’s more of a popularity vote than anything now.

Is this your homework, Larry?

by Schooled You on Jan 10, 2012 7:48 AM EST reply actions

Mildly competitive?

In 2001 our D was ranked 21st
When Fletcher came into Buffalo in 2002, we went to 15th
Then in 2003 they added Takeo Spikes to the mix and we jumped to 2nd (under Gregg Williams)
2004 we changed coach and went to Mularkey and still ranked 2nd defensively

Then in 2005 we said goodbye to Pat Williams and dropped to 29th defensively
In 2006 we lost Sam Adams and ranked 18th

The moral of this story is: Our Defense was completely on top of their game when we had 2 dominant DTs (Sam Adams and Pat Williams) assisted by great Linebackers like Spikes, Fletcher and Crowell.

With Kyle & Marcel, I am hopeful for what the future holds.

Rebuilding a team properly takes time and patience

by keysh67 on Jan 10, 2012 8:48 AM EST reply actions

I’ve got to admit that overall i think that we are currently ill equip to run a 4-3. BUT our best players are better in a 4-3. So in the end the best move might be to move back to it.

by CanadianBillsFan on Jan 10, 2012 12:01 PM EST up reply actions

Damned if you do and Damned if you don’t

Rebuilding a team properly takes time and patience

by keysh67 on Jan 10, 2012 12:10 PM EST up reply actions

pretty much

this offseason should be a final determinant though

by CanadianBillsFan on Jan 10, 2012 2:19 PM EST up reply actions

And

This isn’t hi-jacking thread material? Fletcher is just another player that passed thru Buffalo recently. See ML.

The Sum Of A Franchise Is Directly Proportionate To The Talent Of Franchise's QB. Get A QB OBD!

by buffalobacker on Jan 11, 2012 12:06 AM EST up reply actions

2 reasons why

1. Tackles are a wildly inconsistent stat:
Above any other stat, tackles are the most subjective in the NFL. A reception is a reception, a carry is a carry..a yeard is a yard..but what exactly is a 1/2 Tackle. it all depends on who is scoring the game and the credit that they feel like giving you.

2. Not a real game changer.
As a MLB, Fletcher is going to be involved in a lot of plays. Its the nature of the position. But how many times do you recall saying “Wow..that was a huge play by Fletcher” or “The game really changed after Fletcher did THAT!”.
In the world of MLB, if you’re not Patrick Willis or Ray Lewis..you’re just meh.

by sfg79 on Jan 10, 2012 8:49 AM EST reply actions 2 recs

Or even hear

Fletcher stops him for a loss.

flayed ones stealth mode

"Fleshling! Do not shoot! For I am one of you fleshy things. It is I. Your Uncle Stan. Can't you tell by the long strips of fleshy substances covered in bodily fluids? Trust me! I have fleeeeeeeeesh."

by mob16151 on Jan 10, 2012 9:12 AM EST up reply actions

Fletcher had great stats with us, yet out run defense was horrible as soon as Sam & Pat were gone. He was always the best 5y tackler in the league!

Rebuilding a team properly takes time and patience

by keysh67 on Jan 10, 2012 10:55 AM EST up reply actions

well said

by lord gloom on Jan 10, 2012 10:30 AM EST up reply actions

And ________ Is Brought Down By Fletcher After A 7 Yard Gain...

Fletcher has the most inflated stats of any player in the league. Yes, he gets a lot of tackles. Pay attention to where those tackles are happening and how many of them are 5 yards past the line of scrimmage.

It’s like when a Safety has a ton of tackles. A SS with 100+ tackles seems like a good accomplishment but it’s usually a sign of a bad defense. If your safety is getting that many tackles, it means that you’re giving up a lot of big plays. Fletcher is the same way, he gets a ton of tackles but always seems to play for a bad defense BECAUSE his tackles are made 5-10 yards downfield. He’s just a not a playmaker or a game changer.

by SabreNation on Jan 10, 2012 12:06 PM EST reply actions

the difference is that his job at inside LB is to plug the runner in the hole – something that Fletcher has rarely accomplished in his career.

Rebuilding a team properly takes time and patience

by keysh67 on Jan 10, 2012 12:12 PM EST up reply actions

Tackle stats dont matter. Now if he leas the league in tackles and was on one of the best defense we can talk. Correct me if I am wring did not two bills lead the league in tackling last year.

"This is a chance to shine some light on the city, They say it’s too cold. I’m going to bring some warmth to it." Marcell Dareus

by matthew62 on Jan 10, 2012 2:12 PM EST via mobile reply actions

I’d agree that Fletcher has always been an underrated player throughout his career.

What hurts him is that so many of the best LBs in the league play inside and only two ILBs make the Pro Bowl every year. That Fletcher is the first injury fill in after HOF type LBs in Urlacher and Willis is actually quite complimentary of his season, IMO.

If the Pro Bowl were about moving players around from different positions to create the best front 7 defense, then Fletcher would probably have a shot at being the fisrt ILB backup with Willis or Urlacher starting outside in a 4-3 or maybe Fletcher would be a backup as the weakside 4-3 LB. But in terms of Pro Bowls, he’s in a tough spot to be in. It’d be like if only two QBs made each Pro Bowl roster and nobody in the AFC could get in for a decade other than Brady and Manning.

"You mean @TWHITNER. It’s how he prefers to be referenced." - Jon Harrington

by kaisertown on Jan 10, 2012 2:22 PM EST reply actions

I agree with this....well said.

He’s going up against two other MLB’s in the NFC that just take up most the vote, Urlacher (until he slows down, which seems like it’ll never happen) and Patrick Willis will always get more attention in a popularity based voting that the Pro Bowl uses. He’s the odd man out it seems when it comes to the initial voting of players. I think kaiser nailed the answer to this discussion.

"I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself. A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself." - D.H. Lawrence

by SouthBuffaloNDgrad on Jan 11, 2012 7:07 PM EST up reply actions