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Football Nation: NFC Top Ten Most Under Rated Players


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http://www.footballnation.com/content/nfc-10-most-underrated-players/12180/

1. London Fletcher - London Fletcher is the epitome of underrated. In his 14th year, the ageless wonder has racked up 115 tackles or more for 12 straight years. After being a Pro Bowl alternate 9 times but never actually making the Pro Bowl, he got an ounce of respect when he was finally voted on the team in 2009 and again in 2010. He even compared himself to Susan Lucci who didn't win an Emmy until her 19th nomination. He's got Hall of Fame numbers but has been over looked his whole career. Let's hope the voters for Canton don't follow the same trend.

It's good to see that people outside of the Skins are starting to recognize him as a great player. Part of me still feels as though it's to little to late. Every year he moves up my list as an all time favorite Skin. I really love the high motor no quit guys. ShanAllen won't let get away as a free agent because I think everyone realizes that he is the heart of the team. As good as his on field play is, he is an awesome leader off it too.

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London is wonderful. He's the greatest Redskin since Darrell Green retired and someone to be truly proud of. If we bring him back for next year (why in the HELL wouldn't we?) he'll then have been with the Redskins longer than with either the Bills or the Rams, so we can claim him as our own. He's also been to his Probowls with us.

I wish we could win a Superbowl with him before he retires.

He does deserve to go to the Hall. The only reason they might not take him is lack of Probowls--such a flawed measure they rely on, ugh.

36 and the best ILB in the league, getting better each year. He's the Brett Favre of LBers.

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London is wonderful. He's the greatest Redskin since Darrell Green retired and someone to be truly proud of. If we bring him back for next year (why in the HELL wouldn't we?) he'll then have been with the Redskins longer than with either the Bills or the Rams, so we can claim him as our own. He's also been to his Probowls with us.

I wish we could win a Superbowl with him before he retires.

He does deserve to go to the Hall. The only reason they might not take him is lack of Probowls--such a flawed measure they rely on, ugh.

36 and the best ILB in the league, getting better each year. He's the Brett Favre of LBers.

Except a completely different attitude then Farve, thank goodness.

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36 and the best ILB in the league, getting better each year. He's the Brett Favre of LBers.

I like London a lot, and wanted the Eagles to sign him from the Bills back when the Skins did. However he's not the best ILB in the league. He is, however an incredibly consistent, reliable, tackling machine.

And, he's not underrated, IMO. 3-4 years ago he was, but not now.

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I like London a lot, and wanted the Eagles to sign him from the Bills back when the Skins did. However he's not the best ILB in the league. He is, however an incredibly consistent, reliable, tackling machine.

And, he's not underrated, IMO. 3-4 years ago he was, but not now.

I pretty much agree with this post 100%. I think he's a very, very good player. He's going to be exactly where he should be 99.99% of the time and he's going to make the play almost as often (everyone makes mistakes). He's not dynamic though and he can't be considered the best ILB in the league. Also, when you've been touted for 2-3 years as "underrated" you start to lose that designation.

I hope he re-signs with the team because he's a great leader for our defense.

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I like London a lot, and wanted the Eagles to sign him from the Bills back when the Skins did. However he's not the best ILB in the league. He is, however an incredibly consistent, reliable, tackling machine.

And, he's not underrated, IMO. 3-4 years ago he was, but not now.

Who is better than him right now? Not Urlacher or Ray Lewis. Not Willis or Mayo either.

London excels in every aspect of the position both on and off the field and has no weaknesses. He's been the best ILB in the league this season by far.

What you're doing right now is underrating him.

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I like London a lot, and wanted the Eagles to sign him from the Bills back when the Skins did. However he's not the best ILB in the league. He is, however an incredibly consistent, reliable, tackling machine.

And, he's not underrated, IMO. 3-4 years ago he was, but not now.

Fundamentally, I buy the best LB in the league aside from Ray Lewis who will always be in the argument... He, like London, doesn't age. Patrick Willis, Jon Beason, Brian Urlacher are other guys that immediately come to mind when you think ILB. The difference between London and all those guys is he's not quite as flashy. Not quite as heralded. But he's certainly in the discussion.

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Who is better than him right now? Not Urlacher or Ray Lewis. Not Willis or Mayo either.

London excels in every aspect of the position both on and off the field and has no weaknesses. He's been the best ILB in the league this season by far.

What you're doing right now is underrating him.

I would venture if you ask every GM in the league whether they would take Patrick Willis now or London in his prime and I think most, if not all, would take Willis. Personally I would take Willis, Urlacher, & Lewis over Fletcher, discounting age consideration.

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I pretty much agree with this post 100%. I think he's a very, very good player. He's going to be exactly where he should be 99.99% of the time and he's going to make the play almost as often (everyone makes mistakes). He's not dynamic though and he can't be considered the best ILB in the league. Also, when you've been touted for 2-3 years as "underrated" you start to lose that designation.

I hope he re-signs with the team because he's a great leader for our defense.

London is dynamic. He does make big plays at a high clip. He's elite at every aspect of his position: single and zone coverages--he's a third safety, making plays on the ball down field against wide receivers and receiving backs. He can blitz; he's phenomenal in pursuit of course, but he can stack and shed in the box and make plays around the LoS; he's one of the best at getting off blocks in the business and his high tackle numbers are telling; tackling of course--he is a very gifted tackler with expert technique and it looks effortless for him; he's a big striker too and one of the hardest hitting players on the team, probably third to only Landry and Lorenzo, who have a big reputation for how hard they hit.

He's also a phenomenal leader like only a few other LBers around the league--Ray Lewis and company.

And simply put, nobody in the league reads their keys and finds the football better than London does.

How does all of that not add up to him being the best ILB in the league right now? I've watched the Bears and Ravens this year and Urlacher and Lewis aren't what they once were. Jerrod Mayo just isn't as good or well rounded as London, and Patrick Willis has taken a back seat to his own teammate this season, and Bowman isn't as good nor as dynamic as London is. Angerer and D'Qwell Jackson are both fantastic too but neither are in London's class in terms of the big play ability/consistency in all aspects of the position. Curtis Lofton, that is what an ILB who is consistent but limited and not dynamic looks like.

The results on the field speak for themselves. London leads the league in tackles and he's generated more big multifaceted plays than any of the other top ILBs. He'll be the first team All Pro this season if he finishes the year at his current pace, and he'll deserve the honor.

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Who is better than him right now? Not Urlacher or Ray Lewis. Not Willis or Mayo either.

London excels in every aspect of the position both on and off the field and has no weaknesses. He's been the best ILB in the league this season by far.

What you're doing right now is underrating him.

Okay let's not get carried away

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I would venture if you ask every GM in the league whether they would take Patrick Willis now or London in his prime and I think most, if not all, would take Willis. Personally I would take Willis, Urlacher, & Lewis over Fletcher, discounting age consideration.

While I'm taking nothing away from London's athleticism, the guys you listed are all more athletic and flashy than London. They are all extremely good ILBs, to be sure. Hell, I'd buy the argument for each that they're better than London. But I can see the argument for London. London is just so fundamentally sound it's ridiculous. From his pre-snap diagnosis to the way he brings his hips through the tackle.

I think that group of guys is a lot closer than you think. They all bring different strengths to the table. To be honest, if you get any of that group (plus guys like Beason) then I think you're doing pretty well :)

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I would venture if you ask every GM in the league whether they would take Patrick Willis now or London in his prime and I think most, if not all, would take Willis. Personally I would take Willis, Urlacher, & Lewis over Fletcher, discounting age consideration.

And you would certainly be wrong to take Lewis and Urlacher over London since neither of them are close to as good as London any more.

London is in his prime, right now and he's better than Willis is right now. This is the best individual year of London's career.

Willis is great, but he hasn't been great this year. Navorro Bowman has been better this year, and even Willis's replacement Larry Grant has picked up the slack from Willis without a hitch. Willis now gets a lot of favorable looks too that London doesn't really get because of the presence of Bowman, his great secondary, and his stunningly good defensive line and OLB play in front of him. And it helps that they dominate time of possession so consistently.

It's no coincidence that London has been unstoppable the past few weeks now that the play of our DL has picked up, our OLBs have improved, and most importantly, he's got a reliable presence beside him now in Perry Riley.

And Willis's scheme doesn't ask him to do as much as ours does of London, who routinely gets matched up in single coverage against offensive speed.

London has been the best ILB in the league this season.

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Agree that Fletcher, to this day, is underrated, despite the fact that everyone seems to overstate how underrated he is.

However, the article loses all credibility when it talks about how underrated Tony Romo sits to pee is...has there ever been anyone so overrated?

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I find it surprising that sooooo many Redskins fans don't actually realize just how great a player London is.

That's the definition of being underrated.

What we're witnessing with him this season is legit greatness and he's been playing almost as well the past several years he's been here.

If you don't believe London is king ILB right now, go back and watch a few Redskins games this season and pay attention only to him.

---------- Post added December-21st-2011 at 08:46 AM ----------

London is great; but if you think he's ever been on the Ray Lewis level or is currently as good as Patrick Willis then you are either a blind homer or just blind :)

Or you've watched neither of them play this season because London is currently better than both--and it's not close.

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While I'm taking nothing away from London's athleticism, the guys you listed are all more athletic and flashy than London. They are all extremely good ILBs, to be sure. Hell, I'd buy the argument for each that they're better than London. But I can see the argument for London. London is just so fundamentally sound it's ridiculous. From his pre-snap diagnosis to the way he brings his hips through the tackle.

I think that group of guys is a lot closer than you think. They all bring different strengths to the table. To be honest, if you get any of that group (plus guys like Beason) then I think you're doing pretty well :)

I agree. My point wasn't to say they're light years ahead of LF, just to say I think as overall ILB, they're better. Fletcher is a phenomenally consistent, strength in the middle of the field that rarely misses tackles or is out of position. Me? I'm taking Willis. :)

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I find it surprising that sooooo many Redskins fans don't actually realize just how great a player London is.

That's the definition of being underrated.

What we're witnessing with him this season is legit greatness and he's been playing almost as well the past several years he's been here.

If you don't believe London is king ILB right now, go back and watch a few Redskins games this season and pay attention only to him.

---------- Post added December-21st-2011 at 08:46 AM ----------

Or you've watched neither of them play this season because London is currently better than both--and it's not close.

I'd agree on Lewis this year which is why I stated it the way I did. I have watched Willis quite a bit though and while I think Bowman might be the best LB in football, Willis is close behind. He absolutely dominated the game against us.... Of course players are aided by playing alongside other good/great players, but you shouldn't penalize them for that either.

I think London is amazing to be doing what he does at his age and I am all for the skins bringing him back (although if I was London I'd probably leave). I consider him to be a perennial all pro and a borderline HOF'er.

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Lewis and Willis aren't even the best players on their own defenses this year. They're not even top 3 on each of their own defenses actually. London is far and away the best player on our team, much less our defense.

I understand your opinion, but I just want to clarify: You think Willis is not top-3 on his own defense?

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I'd agree on Lewis this year which is why I stated it the way I did. I have watched Willis quite a bit though and while I think Bowman might be the best LB in football, Willis is close behind. He absolutely dominated the game against us.... Of course players are aided by playing alongside other good/great players, but you shouldn't penalize them for that either.

I think London is amazing to be doing what he does at his age and I am all for the skins bringing him back (although if I was London I'd probably leave). I consider him to be a perennial all pro and a borderline HOF'er.

You would think Willis is better if you only watched the game against us. He's actually been pretty pedestrian for most of the rest of this season and is clearly not the player he was last year.

Bowman can't be the best LBer in football because he isn't better than London for one thing, and that's only considering ILBs.

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I understand your opinion, but I just want to clarify: You think Willis is not top-3 on his own defense?

Nope, not this season. You're not clarifying either, you're making my statement more general by leaving out the "this year" part.

And it's true. Justin Smith, Aldon Smith, Navorro Bowman, and Carlos Rogers have all been better, more impactful defenders than Willis this year.

Justin Smith is the best player on that entire team. He's amazing. Willis has been ordinary for most of the season.

EDIT: forgot about Dashon Goldson too--not a household name yet, but a legit star in the making.

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