ARE YOU NEW HERE? NOT LOGGED IN? PLEASE TAKE A MOMENT TO REGISTER FOR AN ACCOUNT AND LOGIN TO REMOVE THIS WINDOW
Welcome to PatsFans.com. Do you have an account? If not - please take a moment to register for our forum and experience a much smoother experience with fewer ads, along with no longer having to see this notification window. Also learn about how you can receive a free Patriots T-Shirt from the Patriots Official ProShop by CLICKING HERE. Please enjoy your stay here, and Go Pats!
I want to know what others think of him? To me, he seems like he has by far the best instincts of any of our LBs and makes some big plays, especially behind the line of scrimmage. He's one of our best D players and he's a free agent. My Xs & Os knowledge is not good so I can't tell exactly if he's as good as he looks to me or am I just seeing a couple of his big plays and think he's better than he actually is?
Thoughts?
__________________
“When you hang with a bunch of 300-pound linemen, you tend to find the places that are the greasiest and serve the most food.” Brady.
FEATURED ADVERTISEMENT
DONATE TO PATSFANS.COM
RECEIVE A FREE PATS T-SHIRT AND SAVE 15% OFF WHEN YOU BUY FROM THE OFFICIAL PROSHOP!
Free T-Shirt & Save 15% Off!
Like Our Site? Please help support our site and server costs by DONATING TO PATSFANS.COM and receive a FREE PATRIOTS T-SHIRT and SAVE 15% off EVERY purchase you make from PatriotsProShop.com. You'll also receive added benefits to your account including Removing All Ads During Your Experience Here At Our Forum.
NEEDED YEARLY SITE DONATIONS: 345 | CURRENT # OF SUBSCRIBED SUPPORTERS: 98
I want to know what others think of him? To me, he seems like he has by far the best instincts of any of our LBs and makes some big plays, especially behind the line of scrimmage. He's one of our best D players and he's a free agent. My Xs & Os knowledge is not good so I can't tell exactly if he's as good as he looks to me or am I just seeing a couple of his big plays and think he's better than he actually is?
Thoughts?
Love Fletcher. You hit the nail on the head. His instincts are exceptional. IMO, he has the best instincts of any linebacker on the roster. That's not a huge leap. He has to be a priority to get resigned. He makes plays.
He played great in the preseason but was benched at points during the season. Lately he's been playing like he was very early on.
Consistency is key, if he can keep playing at the level he has recently he'll get resigned. If he looks like he did against Dallas (I think) he'll be looking for a new team.
He played great in the preseason but was benched at points during the season. Lately he's been playing like he was very early on.
Consistency is key, if he can keep playing at the level he has recently he'll get resigned. If he looks like he did against Dallas (I think) he'll be looking for a new team.
He was an end in college and his burst/timing shows this. I wouldn't call his big plays instinct as most of those are run or pass blitzes that are being called for him. That said, to be able to time those effectively is a real art form. He plays with tremendous leverage, understands angles, and has pretty good vision when scraping for a career edge player.
He still needs to learn a few nuances in man coverage, but his zone is good, and he displays rare hip fluidity for a converted end. The other thing he's missing is explosion into his drops (see defensive weakness when he is the mike in a tampa-2), but he has the strength to learn these things. He's got the tools to be great in coverage, and something I think we will see him progress in as things move forward.
He is an excellent football player that is still learning how to play linebacker. The fact that the coaches are scheming for him speaks volumes. While he is still incomplete as a product, the fact that he is where he is after such a drastic conversion is impressive. Fletcher is going to be a very nice player, ultimately settling somewhere in the upper-mid tier of starting ILB's. He also brings a nice skillset to the position that enables a lot of blitzing which most career linebackers don't have an innate feel for.
I'm really excited about this linebacker corps when Spikes is healthy. Arguably the best young group in the NFL.
He's one of our best D players and he's a free agent.\
Not to worry, Fletcher is only in his 2nd season. The Patriots retain his exclusive rights for 2 more years. If they share your high opinion, though, they could try to sign him to an extension that gives him a little upfront security that he hasn't seen as a UDFA.
He played great in the preseason but was benched at points during the season. Lately he's been playing like he was very early on.
Consistency is key, if he can keep playing at the level he has recently he'll get resigned. If he looks like he did against Dallas (I think) he'll be looking for a new team.
He was never benched. He was Spikes' backup until he overtook Guyton.
Fletcher has some things I like but you guys are overrating him. He was awful against Denver. Don't confuse insticts with run blitzes which we ran a ton of against Miami.
He has the physical tools, I like him but he's not better than Spikes. Could be someday but not now.
He was an end in college and his burst/timing shows this. I wouldn't call his big plays instinct as most of those are run or pass blitzes that are being called for him. That said, to be able to time those effectively is a real art form. He plays with tremendous leverage, understands angles, and has pretty good vision when scraping for a career edge player.
He still needs to learn a few nuances in man coverage, but his zone is good, and he displays rare hip fluidity for a converted end. The other thing he's missing is explosion into his drops (see defensive weakness when he is the mike in a tampa-2), but he has the strength to learn these things. He's got the tools to be great in coverage, and something I think we will see him progress in as things move forward.
He is an excellent football player that is still learning how to play linebacker. The fact that the coaches are scheming for him speaks volumes. While he is still incomplete as a product, the fact that he is where he is after such a drastic conversion is impressive. Fletcher is going to be a very nice player, ultimately settling somewhere in the upper-mid tier of starting ILB's. He also brings a nice skillset to the position that enables a lot of blitzing which most career linebackers don't have an innate feel for.
I'm really excited about this linebacker corps when Spikes is healthy. Arguably the best young group in the NFL.
Jay, your post are really informative much appreciated..
RE The bolded:
I agree with you but I am just wondering if you can expand on that last graph. I am not as informed as you and others when it comes to the nuances of the game.
So it would be cool if I could get your thoughts on the Pats young linebackers(more in depth). So I could A)learn more. And B) just use it on sundays with my friends, ha..
As to Dane Fletcher , love him..
__________________ "There is an old saying about the strength of the wolf is the pack, and I think there is a lot of truth to that. On a football team, it's not the strength of the individual players, but it is the strength of the unit and how they all function together." - Bill Belichick
25Likes
Opinion on Dane Fletcher?
Linear Mode
