LB London Fletcher – St. Louis Rams, 1998-2001
Photo credit: Scott Halleran/Allsport.
London Fletcher is an unsung hero for the Greatest Show on Turf era. He started for the Rams as a special teams player in 1998 and then moved to inside linebacker the following season. Although undersized at 5’10”, 245-pounds, Fletcher still made quite an impact.
During the Rams’ Super Bowl-winning season, Fletcher had 90 tackles (including 12 for a loss), three sacks and safety. The following season he improved dramatically with 133 tackles (including 106 solo tackles and 13 for a loss), 5.5 sacks and four INTs. In the Rams 2001 Super Bowl run, Fletcher had 116 tackles (including 89 solo tackles), 4.5 sacks and two INTs.
Fletcher played collegiate ball at NCAA Division III school John Carroll University in his native Cleveland, Ohio. While at John Carroll, he helped the university win its first playoff game in school history in 1997. He had a career 386 tackles, 14 sacks, three INTs and two TDs throughout college. He also set a single-season school record for tackles at 202 as a senior.
Fletcher was passed over in the 1998 NFL Draft, but the Rams signed him as a free agent. He continued to impress head coach Dick Vermeil and started him after his rookie season. After the 2001 season, Fletcher went to the Buffalo Bills for five seasons. In 2007, he joined the Washington Redskins where he finished his career in 2013. He holds the record for most consecutive games started at linebacker at 215. He finished his NFL career with 2,031 tackles, 39 sacks, 23 INTs and 20 forced fumbles.
