NavarreFL_Bills_Fan Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 TMQ 1/27/09 If memory serves, I thought the reason they let Fletcher go was because he wanted too much money. If I remember correctly, the knock on him was he wasn't an "attacking" linebacker....BS if you asked me. Good player, great work ethic, and great around the locker room....the Bills shoulda resigned him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
respk Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 London Fletcher has great stats I will agree. Most tackles 5 yards downfield. Made one great play per game so everyone remembers that play and sees all of those stats. The Bills would have been crazy to pay big money to continue with him. Whitner is average at best so far. Is not a game changer which you would hope a number 8 pick would be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silvermike Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Oh yeah.....this team has been run so poorly for so long that there is a young generation of Bills Fans who really don't know what wins football games. That is a freaking shame. I think that most Bills fans seem to have stopped using reason and resorted to finding plans to fix the team that are based on magic. Things like "never hire a Tennessee DC!" or "Never sign a QB from Jacksonville" or "the only way to win is the 3-4/46/Cover-2/zone blitz" or "hire only experienced coaches" or "hire no retreads" or ANYTHING besides a commitment to bringing in the best players, building a scheme around them, and other seemingly pedestrian goals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DDD Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 TMQ 1/27/09 If memory serves, I thought the reason they let Fletcher go was because he wanted too much money. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Levy didn't offer him an extension because he wanted an "attacking" linebacker who didn't make plays "downfield." What a bunch of crap. London was a heart and soul player for our defense and a great linebacker. A great signing by Tom Donahoe to replace the injured Sam Cowart who was never the same after the achilles tear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Turk Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 TMQ 1/27/09 If memory serves, I thought the reason they let Fletcher go was because he wanted too much money. I thought they let him go because they didn't want to pay a lot of money for a guy that makes lots of tackles after the RB has already gained 7 or 8 yards... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavarreFL_Bills_Fan Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 I thought they let him go because they didn't want to pay a lot of money for a guy that makes lots of tackles after the RB has already gained 7 or 8 yards... The problem is, a linebackbacker is only good as his defensive line. Good DTs eat up blockers and allow LBs to attack. Even Urlacher needs Tommie Harris, Ray Lewis needs Haloti Ngata, and James Farrior needs Casey Hampton. London was a really good LB who was blamed, in part, for a defense that lost Pat Williams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dog14787 Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 The problem is, a linebackbacker is only good as his defensive line. Good DTs eat up blockers and allow LBs to attack. Even Urlacher needs Tommie Harris, Ray Lewis needs Haloti Ngata, and James Farrior needs Casey Hampton. London was a really good LB who was blamed, in part, for a defense that lost Pat Williams. Couldn't have said it better myself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLynchTrain Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 They played Whitner at SS, FS and nickel. That is not good for his development. Now I'm not saying he's a freaking stud, but I'm not ready to give up on him yet. A legit, rangy FS allows him to play a little closer to the line, assisting in run support while covering the short to medium pass game. Also, to answer your questions: Antoine Bethea plays next to Sanders and made the Pro Bowl last year. Antrel Rolle plays beside Wilson and has made strides after switching from CB. Ryan Clark plays next to Polamalu and had a couple of huge hits, including the hit on Welker. Eat it. haha that was an awesome way to put someone in their place. its also good to know that bethea was the 24th safety taken in the 2006 draft, when whitner was #2. Watched the kid when he was at Howard...he was nasty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 I thought they let him go because they didn't want to pay a lot of money for a guy that makes lots of tackles after the RB has already gained 7 or 8 yards... Far better to have your safeties make all the tackles 9 or 10 yards downfield. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miyagi-Do Karate Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 He said Leonhard's a better safety than Whitner. You're sugar-coating it a bit. He ripped Whitner--calling him "significantly worse": Jim Leonhard*, Baltimore (undrafted, a walk-on at Wisconsin, let go by Buffalo after the Bills used a high first-round draft choice on safety Donte Whitner, a significantly worse player) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 You're sugar-coating it a bit. He ripped Whitner--calling him "significantly worse": Jim Leonhard*, Baltimore (undrafted, a walk-on at Wisconsin, let go by Buffalo after the Bills used a high first-round draft choice on safety Donte Whitner, a significantly worse player) Maybe I did, but there are several "fans" who read an article, watch a few games, and then call Whitner excellent. He did say Whitner was significantly worse, but I'm not sure it's that bad. It's closer than that. This thread just goes to show that most people don't realize how bad something is until it's obvious. We're supposed to give the benefit of the doubt until the bitter end on players and coaches. Whitner's 3 seasons have been unspectacular and there oughta be serious questions about his ability to make big plays. For a safety, if recognition skills are poor, that's not a good sign. The difference between guys like Whitner versus Polamalu, Sanders, Reed, et al is anticipating the play. Whitner's not diagnosing things as quickly. But to some he's not a bust and that's good enough. I think he's an average player who Buffalo thought was a safe pick, though ultimately he's never going to meet the expectations of an 8th overall pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sisyphean Bills Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 I'm guessing the "significantly worse" was intended in statistical terms. Whitner plays the same position in the same defensive system as Bob Sanders and makes no plays. He had 1 PD in 08 -- 6 fewer than Ryan Denney. He accumulates tackles, but those are on a steep downward trend (Simpson and Scott both had more tackles than Whitner in 08). He's a non-factor on special teams. Leonhard, as a backup SS, had more tackles, 6 times as many PDs, a pick 6, a sack, and contributed to special teams on a team that went to the AFC Championship game. Leonhard had more PD, INT, and FF in 3 playoff games than Whitner had in the 16 game regular season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsVet Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 I'm guessing the "significantly worse" was intended in statistical terms. Whitner plays the same position in the same defensive system as Bob Sanders and makes no plays. He had 1 PD in 08 -- 6 fewer than Ryan Denney. He accumulates tackles, but those are on a steep downward trend (Simpson and Scott both had more tackles than Whitner in 08). He's a non-factor on special teams. Leonhard, as a backup SS, had more tackles, 6 times as many PDs, a pick 6, a sack, and contributed to special teams on a team that went to the AFC Championship game. Leonhard had more PD, INT, and FF in 3 playoff games than Whitner had in the 16 game regular season. Whitner's just not getting to the ball. When a guy doesn't defend passes, force turnovers, or make tackles at or behind the LOS it tells me their recognition skills are poor. Leonhard probably benefits from the front 7 (which oughta illustrate you need DL and LB's before DB's) but he seems to have better instincts in coverage as well. That's sad considering he's a UDFA and not the 8th overall pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zow2 Posted January 28, 2009 Share Posted January 28, 2009 Finally this year Fletcher let out some steam and vented about never getting selected. It was interesting. He was really flabbergasted. I guess taking the "high road" all these years he has decided to talk about it more. It just goes to show what a strange process it is and political. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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