LabattBlue Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 He's been gone from the Bills for 6 years, is 37 years old, and if he signed with the Bills tomorrow, he would immediately become their best LB and it wouldn't be close. Just one of many moves that has helped keep the Bills in the bottom 1/3 of the league for the last 13 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 He's been gone from the Bills for 6 years, is 37 years old, and if he signed with the Bills tomorrow, he would immediately become their best LB and it wouldn't be close. Just one of many moves that has helped keep the Bills in the bottom 1/3 of the league for the last 13 years. no one in their right mind pegs an undersized LB to be as effective as he is at 37. it was early to let him walk but lets not pretend that what hes doing today was obvious, or expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aristocrat Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 I love when people bring up the downfield tackle argument...it is the funniest and stupidest argument I've heard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Hindsight Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 He's been gone from the Bills for 6 years, is 37 years old, and if he signed with the Bills tomorrow, he would immediately become their best LB and it wouldn't be close. Just one of many moves that has helped keep the Bills in the bottom 1/3 of the league for the last 13 years. Ahh yes the neighborhood whopping boy for 6 years returns as the prodigal son Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rico Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 Absolutely correct, what a horrible move to let him go... and then burn two high draft picks on friggin' Pos to take his place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted December 31, 2012 Author Share Posted December 31, 2012 Ahh yes the neighborhood whopping boy for 6 years returns as the prodigal son When was he the neighborhood whipping boy? I am just trying to point out just how BAD our current LB corp is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rico Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 When was he the neighborhood whipping boy? I am just trying to point out just how BAD our current LB corp is. I don't remember that either.... outside of a few knuckleheads, most everyone appreciated his game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 (edited) When was he the neighborhood whipping boy? I am just trying to point out just how BAD our current LB corp is. you dont recall the masses calling for his head cause he didnt make all his tackles in the backfield? thats why poz was such a hot name around here in the draft. multiple coaches, gms, schemes etc... later, and with his age - i cant say hes the best example for "omg how did he get away." I don't remember that either.... outside of a few knuckleheads, most everyone appreciated his game. at best a mixed bag. a few haters, a lot of "seems nice enough but must be upgraded" and a handful of staunch supporters is what i recall Edited December 31, 2012 by NoSaint Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphadawg7 Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 no one in their right mind pegs an undersized LB to be as effective as he is at 37. it was early to let him walk but lets not pretend that what hes doing today was obvious, or expected. Forget about today...what about the last 6 years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProbablyWrong Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 I think in 1-2 years Bradham will be solid. He won't be fletcher, but he is showing some playmaking flashes now. We need at least one star in that group though to keep it all together Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 Forget about today...what about the last 6 years? that would be the "it was early to let him walk" bit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 Fletcher was said to make too too many tackles downfield around here. The current LB's don't make tackles. Advantage LF(B). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted December 31, 2012 Author Share Posted December 31, 2012 I think in 1-2 years Bradham will be solid. He won't be fletcher, but he is showing some playmaking flashes now. We need at least one star in that group though to keep it all together Maybe, or he could be the next Moats who everyone was in love with after one sack. Fletcher was said to make too too many tackles downfield around here. The current LB's don't make tackles. Advantage LF(B). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphadawg7 Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 But dont worry...we got Poz instead of LF...how did that work out? lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 When he got that big 3rd down sack with about 8-9 minutes left, I came right up off the coach with a big 'ol "Yeah Fletch!" and the kind of fist pump typically reserved for a September Bills game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ALLEN1QB Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 He's been gone from the Bills for 6 years, is 37 years old, and if he signed with the Bills tomorrow, he would immediately become their best LB and it wouldn't be close. Just one of many moves that has helped keep the Bills in the bottom 1/3 of the league for the last 13 years. Tell me about it. Every time I watch the Skins I get pissed and the Dumb A$$ that let him go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 There was a small but vocal faction of London Fletcher critics. The sort of person he is (this guy could be the NFL Man of the Year every year) and the sort of player he is, they should have tried to keep him. But as No Saint points out, he was at an age where performance often declines. However it was a mistake by the organization to let him walk. There's no question that he's head and shoulders above any linebacker on the Bills right now. And he's been playing with a sprained ankle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bills44 Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 When he got that big 3rd down sack with about 8-9 minutes left, I came right up off the coach with a big 'ol "Yeah Fletch!" and the kind of fist pump typically reserved for a September Bills game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrDawkinstein Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 I really think that Bills Fans, not just the past FO, are unable to judge LBs. When we had Fletcher, people complained that all his tackles came 5 yards past the LOS. We released him and drafted Poz. 3 years later, everyone is complaining that all of Poz's tackles come 5 yards past the LOS. (Neither of which were really true. See a pattern here?) Now, we had an entire season where fans talked about how weak Shep is against the run, when it turned out that he wasnt even on the field for most of those plays. It was our Nickel (with Scott and Barnett) that was getting gashed on the ground. I'm fully on board with needed upgrades to our OLBs (especially Barnett), but lets not re-write fan history like we knew more than the FO did at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobChalmers Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 I think in 1-2 years Bradham will be solid. He won't be fletcher, but he is showing some playmaking flashes now. We need at least one star in that group though to keep it all together Seriously, If Bradham was our 3rd most promising LB we might have a solid group. That this 4th round rookie is our best LB prospect says it all about how bad the unit is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealityCheck Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 London Fletcher left this team when we had very little on the D-line. If he would have been playing MLB for the Bills this past season I think he would have been a serious playmaker and leader for the defense as a whole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 Spikes too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fan in San Diego Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 Takeo Spikes is still kicking ass in San Diego. He got ejected from the game yesterday. He was spitting mad. Dude can still play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jester43 Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 i never thought he was that great...problem is we haven't had any linebackers even that good since he left. that he hasn't lost a stop in 6 years is the remarkable thing. he was terrific last night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RealityCheck Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 i never thought he was that great...problem is we haven't had any linebackers even that good since he left. that he hasn't lost a stop in 6 years is the remarkable thing. he was terrific last night. Are you saying that he was terrific last night and hadn't lost a step in 6 years, but you didn't think he was that great when he was in Buffalo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billsguy Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 He's been gone from the Bills for 6 years, is 37 years old, and if he signed with the Bills tomorrow, he would immediately become their best LB and it wouldn't be close. Just one of many moves that has helped keep the Bills in the bottom 1/3 of the league for the last 13 years. I believe this says more about the Bills linebackers than about London Fletcher. Fletcher is not a top linebacker (and the Redskins are not a top defense) even though he makes a lot of tackles. However, he is better than anything the Bills have now. The Bills linebacking corp is the worst I have seen. The talent level is extremely low. I agree that this is a main reason for the Bills defense being so bad for the last several years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jester43 Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 yes he was an average starting nfl linebacker then and now. he did have a particularly good game last night i'd say....as he did from time to time here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 yes he was an average starting nfl linebacker then and now. he did have a particularly good game last night i'd say....as he did from time to time here. So the fact that he's a 3-time Pro Bowler, a second-team All Pro, and the captain of every team he's ever played on makes him "an average starting NFL linebacker?" I'll have to file that one away for future reference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 So the fact that he's a 3-time Pro Bowler, a second-team All Pro, and the captain of every team he's ever played on makes him "an average starting NFL linebacker?" I'll have to file that one away for future reference. think how below average that makes our group! a solid country mile below average, if you are measuring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jester43 Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 oh god here we go again. i reallyhave better things to do than to resurrect this whole argument. just whatever. you're right. hall of fame. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted December 31, 2012 Share Posted December 31, 2012 oh god here we go again. i reallyhave better things to do than to resurrect this whole argument. just whatever. you're right. hall of fame. Thank you. You did the right thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgia Bill Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 When he got that big 3rd down sack with about 8-9 minutes left, I came right up off the coach with a big 'ol "Yeah Fletch!" and the kind of fist pump typically reserved for a September Bills game. Yeah, it's kind of sad when you're relegated to cheering for (and lamenting) the ex-Bills that were supposedly washed up and continue to play well. We wouldn't even be going there though if the Bills had given anything serious to cheer for the last few x few years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Turk Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 I remember Fletcher getting murdered on this board when he was hear because the unit would be great until they needed a stop and then folded like a cheap tent to lose the game, and how he always made tackles 8 to 10 yards downfield instead of near the line of scrimmage and that was why his tackle numbers were so great. Oh yeah, he also used to get burnt in coverage a lot... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maury Ballstein Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 Fletcher's a beast Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBUffalo Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 A country mile and a couple extra feet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 Takeo Spikes is still kicking ass in San Diego. He got ejected from the game yesterday. He was spitting mad. Dude can still play. Eagles, niners, chargers, thought he could play Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 Lets not compare Poz to London Fletcher. Poz doesnt have the quickness or instincts that Fletcher has. While Poz is good at keeping a play infront of him, he was never in Fletchers league. It was a stupid move to not re-sign Fletcher and forced the Bills into their continuing bad pattern of needing to fill holes instead of adding depth. Fletcher was a beast his last year in Buffalo. 2 sacks 4 ints 2 defensive tds and 14 passes defensed. Especially at a time when the Bills had lost Takeo Spikes to his achillies injury letting Fletcher just walk away was a dumb marv levy move I vividly remember the Fletcher hate around here. I never really understood it. Sure he's not your prototypical 6'2-6'4 250lb lb whos making all these behind the los stops (than again what lb does this "all the time") Fletcher is the kind of defensive leader and great player every team would be lucky to have. To say that "people expected he'd still be good at 37" well probably not but he was a very good player when we let him walk and just like it's taken years to replace the losses of ted washington and pat williams it's taking years to replace Fletcher Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Numark Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 what the hell is a country mile? I bet fitz couldnt throw that far Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 As far as Spikes goes I remember there being some talk about him wanting to leave cause he didn't think he fit Jauron's defense which wanted faster/quicker linebackers. Pre achillies tear Spikes would've been a no brainer. It's a god damn shame with the amount of defensive talent we had that we couldn't get to the postseason. All the aggressiveness that has gone at times into free agency needs to start going into the front office/coaching staff if Buffalo is ever serious about competing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoSaint Posted January 1, 2013 Share Posted January 1, 2013 what the hell is a country mile? I bet fitz couldnt throw that far Gets erratic at a city block. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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