Christopher Price: Fletcher looks bigger.

[convertedpatsfan]

Can we turn a situational MLB into a full time OLB?? Isn't he a little short for OLB??

Not being a naysayer, but it is a big step.. would love it if it happened. UDFA's who do well are always a good thing.

I agree that he's too short to play OLB full-time. And it would be a huge step. But BB mentioned several times this season about how rare it was for a former DE to transition to ILB too. He could only think of 2 others, Carson and Bru.

This is what the Pats' pass rush has come to? Dane Fletcher the Savior? wow...

As far as pass rush skills go, don't forget he was a DE in college and averaged 7 sacks over his last two seasons.

Not saying he's the answer to the pass rush problem, but this isn't Kyle Arrington playing DE.

 

[Jangles]

Well...he is 6'1. I think he might have bulked up to become our reserve 34SILB.

I work in the Bozeman airport which is where Dane is from. I'm 6'4", and he looked a lot taller than just 6'1"

 

[Off The Grid]

Besides, it's great that we seem to have guys that can produce so much speculation in their roll.

Actually, I think the OP meant that he was adding muscle.

 

[Defsoul]

I work in the Bozeman airport which is where Dane is from. I'm 6'4", and he looked a lot taller than just 6'1"

According to NFLdraftscout.com Fletcher measured in at 6'1'' 5/8 on his pro day last year, that's almost 6'2''.

 

[crowell33]

Here comes Fletcher:

New England Patriots linebacker Dane Fletcher hopes to improve in second season - ESPN Boston

 

[Sciz]

According to NFLdraftscout.com Fletcher measured in at 6'1'' 5/8 on his pro day last year, that's almost 6'2''.

Depending on his shoe choice for the day, he was probably closer to 6' 2.5''

I'm a big Fletcher fan. He's by no means a starting OLB, but I could see him carving out a nice niche as a subpackage OLB and coverage ILB. He's definitely got huge potential in both.

 

[woolster22]

So he is a little short for the OLB role, but where does his wingspan leave him? I haven't been able to find anything stating his arm length/wingspan. Granted I only went with a google search(es), but I had no luck. A lanky 6'2" can play like 6'4" if the arms are there. I'm no athlete, but messing around playing basketball my monkey arms let me d up guys 3 inches taller than me (they too, are not athletic!). In any case, I'm wondering if maybe he has some rather long arms that he can use to his advantage in keeping tackles away from his body and for clogging up passing lanes as effectively as someone a few inches taller. He certainly seems to posses the athletism to man the position (with the added bulk of course), and IF he has some rather unusually long arms, the height may not be an issue, but rather a strength. Maybe he is in fact a rare combination of low center of gravity with vertical disruption possibilties. On the other hand, all this speculation could also be for nothing.

There was some mention of Moore a while back...I love the kid. He seemed to come up big when he dud get the chance to play (lucked my way into the Baltimore game, didn'talways get to catch the games due to work though). Maybe it was the impact of another "who the hell is this guy" moments, but I felt like he produced fairly well when given playing time. Take all this with a grain of salt, most the games I was able to catch were only in bits and pieces while at work...

 

[patfanken]

I don't understand why all you have made it an absolute certainty that an OLB HAS to be 6'5 to play the position. Yes it might be the ideal size, but to immediately dismiss the POSSIBILITY of a smaller person playing the position is the height of hubris. James Harrison has had a very nice career as an OLB despite being 3" shorter than Fletcher and with shorter arms.

What I think we are missing here is the REMARKABLE transition this kid made going from at college DE to an INSIDE LB. We keep hearing how difficult the transition from college DE to OLB is hard. Believe me its that much HARDER going to ILB. It took Bruschi 6 seasons to do it. This kid must have GREAT football instincts and intelligence just to get as far as he did last season

Now I don't know where he will play next season, or how many snaps he'll get. But one thing I DO know is that I wouldn't doubt for a second that it was possible for him to become an pass rush option from the outside. It would be a lot easier transition than the one he made last season.

 

[Sciz]

Harrison is playing in a completely different scheme and is largely irrelevant. They're asking him to shoot gaps and go around the corner, not set the edge.

 

[Joker]

Steeler OLB James Harrison...6 foot 1 inch

Steeler OLB Lamarr Woodley..6 foot 2 inches

Farrior has played outside backer...6 foot 1/2 inch

stop crying about Fletcher's height...

here's Pittsburgh's roster...look at the bulk of their LB's...all between 6 feet and 6'2....Pittsburgh Steelers 2010 Team Player Roster - ESPN

if Fletcher can PLAY at a high level, his size has ZERO to do with it...

 

[Sciz]

Steeler OLB James Harrison...6 foot 1 inch

Steeler OLB Lamarr Woodley..6 foot 2 inches

Farrior has played outside backer...6 foot 1/2 inch

stop crying about Fletcher's height...

here's Pittsburgh's roster...look at the bulk of their LB's...all between 6 feet and 6'2....Pittsburgh Steelers 2010 Team Player Roster - ESPN

if Fletcher can PLAY at a high level, his size has ZERO to do with it...

Completely different scheme. Heck, their run responsibilities are nearly the exact opposite.

Pats OLBs are taught to set the edge and funnel rushers back inside, where Mayo can clean up. Steelers LBs run around blockers and try to jam the middle, either getting a TFL or pushing the RB outside, where the safeties can clean up. There's a reason we see Polamalu getting so many runs for no/minimal gain out in the flats. As far as I know, no other NFL team asks its OLBs to do what the Pats do, so there's really no comparison of OLBs among teams.

 

[Joker]

so, if I understand your post correctly, you are implying that James Harrison or Lamarr Woodley couldn't play outside backer for the Pats??

 

[Sciz]

so, if I understand your post correctly, you are implying that James Harrison or Lamarr Woodley couldn't play outside backer for the Pats??

They wouldn't be nearly as effective as they are in Pittsburgh's scheme. It's all relative, and while they're better fits than Elvis Dumervil or Dwight Freeney, they're pretty far from fitting as well as Mike Vrabel, who coincidently was a poor fit for Pittsburgh's scheme but perfect for the Pats.

 

[Joker]

Mike Vrabel is 400 years old...let's see how the kid plays out before we assign definitives to his ability...

 

[Kasmir]

When replaying games, I was really impressed by how strong Fletcher came on at the end of the season. He's much faster and more agile than I would have guessed, and is a deadly tackler. As some have pointed out, he was a pass rushing DE in college, and with his speed I'd be surprised if they didn't blitz him from various packages, including from the edge. I'm not sure he has the bulk to be a 3-down OLB in the Pats system, but he looks like a coming player who needs to be on the field. These small college guys can be real surprises, and exactly what you want to see from them is rising to the NFL level of competition. Fletcher flashed everything you could hope for in his first year; we now know he can play in the NFL, with ceiling as yet unknown.

 

[patfanken]

Completely different scheme. Heck, their run responsibilities are nearly the exact opposite.

Pats OLBs are taught to set the edge and funnel rushers back inside, where Mayo can clean up. Steelers LBs run around blockers and try to jam the middle, either getting a TFL or pushing the RB outside, where the safeties can clean up. There's a reason we see Polamalu getting so many runs for no/minimal gain out in the flats. As far as I know, no other NFL team asks its OLBs to do what the Pats do, so there's really no comparison of OLBs among teams.

Again I think you are taking an ideal and assuming its the norm. On 3rd and 10 no is going to ask any OLB to "set the edge". I almost wish I had never heard the term,"setting the edge" since it is now so over used by a lot of people who really don't know what they are talking about (present company excepted. of course )

BTW - forcing a RB deep and wide is ALSO an accepted result when you "set the edge"

BTW - "setting the edge" requires just not being moved off the LOS, keeping control of blocker, and ideally keeping your outside arm free so you can move down the line to the outside freely

BTW- NONE of the above is applicable when you are rushing the passer, which is why there are several great from the outside pass rushers who AREN'T 6'5 with long arms

No one ever said that Fletcher was a 3 down OLB prospect. It was only opined that because of his quickness, he COULD be an option as the outside pass rusher everyone seems to think is an absolute necessity every draft

 

[Oswlek]

Again I think you are taking an ideal and assuming its the norm. On 3rd and 10 no is going to ask any OLB to "set the edge". I almost wish I had never heard the term,"setting the edge" since it is now so over used by a lot of people who really don't know what they are talking about (present company excepted. of course )

BTW - forcing a RB deep and wide is ALSO an accepted result when you "set the edge"

BTW - "setting the edge" requires just not being moved off the LOS, keeping control of blocker, and ideally keeping your outside arm free so you can move down the line to the outside freely

BTW- NONE of the above is applicable when you are rushing the passer, which is why there are several great from the outside pass rushers who AREN'T 6'5 with long arms

No one ever said that Fletcher was a 3 down OLB prospect. It was only opined that because of his quickness, he COULD be an option as the outside pass rusher everyone seems to think is an absolute necessity every draft

I don't necessarily disagree with this post, it's actually a point I've tried to make several times under the guise of "no one 2 gaps on 3rd and 12".

That said, everything BB has done in the draft and FA indicates the "ideal" is more of an "expectation". When you are forced to use Kyle Arrington as a pass rushing DE, that situation screams for help, but BB just doesn't have much use for a johnny-one-note pass rusher.

 

[patchick]

Can we turn a situational MLB into a full time OLB?? Isn't he a little short for OLB??

Here's the funny thing: Before training camp last year, all observers (here and in the media) assumed Fletcher would play OLB with the Pats. He was listed as DE/OLB in every draft publication, and I can't find a single mention of him as a potential ILB. Even when he started lining up inside in camp, folks here dismissed it as "coaching up positional flexibility."

Now after one season as a reserve ILB, it's considered a stretch to convert him to the OLB position he's so obviously unsuited to.

Fletcher's pre-draft profile: College DL who put up impressive career numbers in both sacks and TFL.
6'1 5/8" 250 4.61/2.62/1.60 29 36" 09'03" 4.35 6.93

An excellent physical comparison is Jerry Hughes:
6' 1 3/4" 255 4.65/2.63/1.63 26 34.5" 09'10" 4.15 6.99

Definitely not "Pats Prototype," but not out of the question.

 

[Sciz]

Again I think you are taking an ideal and assuming its the norm. On 3rd and 10 no is going to ask any OLB to "set the edge". I almost wish I had never heard the term,"setting the edge" since it is now so over used by a lot of people who really don't know what they are talking about (present company excepted. of course )

BTW - forcing a RB deep and wide is ALSO an accepted result when you "set the edge"

BTW - "setting the edge" requires just not being moved off the LOS, keeping control of blocker, and ideally keeping your outside arm free so you can move down the line to the outside freely

BTW- NONE of the above is applicable when you are rushing the passer, which is why there are several great from the outside pass rushers who AREN'T 6'5 with long arms

No one ever said that Fletcher was a 3 down OLB prospect. It was only opined that because of his quickness, he COULD be an option as the outside pass rusher everyone seems to think is an absolute necessity every draft

Then we're arguing about two different points, because no one said that he needs to be 6'5'' to be a situational guy either. I love his potential as a 3rd down pass rush specialist, but I'm completely willing to say he'll never be a quality starting, 3 down OLB for the Pats, due in no small part to his size.

The point of my post holds, though, even if it was irrelevant in response to yours. Just because the Steelers have small starters does not mean the Pats can.

 

[PATRIOTSFANINPA]

I personally think a heathy Eric Moore put out there as an OLB will be a much better player than Fletcher will be this year.

There is a reason why Belichick did not address the OLB issue and Moore and Fletcher are surely two reasons why.

Moore plays DL,but is the right type of size and can certainly play the OLB position if he gets some work there.