Veteran Linebacker London Fletcher Is Retiring After 16 Seasons

London Fletcher, the oldest active defensive player in the National Football League, has announced his retirement at the end of the season. It will be the end of one of the most unusual and remarkable careers in football history. The Washington Redskins middle linebacker has played sixteen seasons in the NFL and hasn׳t missed a game in his career (he is only one of four men to have played 250 straight games). He has been a starter since his second year in the league, when he was a part of the St. Louis Rams' Super Bowl XXXIV winning team, and hasn't missed a start since the 2000 season. After being snubbed for the Pro Bowl for many years, he finally made his first Pro Bowl after the 2009 season (at age 34) and also has being selected to the all-star game in each of the past three seasons. He also has been named to the AP All-Pro second team the past two seasons.
Fletcher played college football at John Carroll University, a Division III school in Cleveland that also produced legendary Hall of Fame coach Don Shula, and was undrafted in 1998, being deemed as undersized at only 5-10 of height. Picked up by the Rams as a free agent, he immediatily contribuited on the special teams, being named as his team's Rookie of the Year, and was a backup to veteran middle linebacker Eric Hill. When Hill moved to the San Diego Chargers in 1999, Fletcher stepped in as a starter, and despite being overshadowed by the Rams "Greatest Show on Turf" offense which featured quarterback Kurt Warner, running back Marshall Faulk and wide receivers Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt, Fletcher was the Rams' leading tackler and was named first alternate for the Pro Bowl. He also was a starter in the Rams 23-16 victory in Super Bowl XXXIV against the Tennessee Titans. Two years later the Rams returned to the Super Bowl, but hey lost against the New England Patriots. This was Fletcher's last game as a Ram, as he moved to the Buffalo Bills in 2002, where he continued his stellar play for another five seasons. As a Bill, Fletcher scored his first two career touchdowns in 2006, one in a fumble return agains the New England Patriots, and the other on an interception return against the Green Bay Packers. For this season (his last in Buffalo) he also added his late grandmother's last name (Baker) to his surname, so he was known as London Fletcher-Baker. He also was named again first alternate to the Pro Bowl.
In 2007 he moved to the Washington Redskins, where he has remained since. In his first season in Washington he scored his third career touchdown on an interception return against the Arizona Cardinals. Aside his four Pro Bowl selections listed before, Fletcher led the NFL in tackles in 2011 and won the Bart Starr Man of the Year Award, given annually to an NFL player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field and in the community, in 2012 (He also was the NFC Defensive Player of the Month of December). This season, he broke the record for most straight games started by a linebacker, a mark held by former Tampa Bay Buccaneers' great Derrick Brooks since the 2008 season.  Fletcher has recorded 39 sacks, 23 interception (one of the few players in history to accomplished at least 20 of both categories) and is credited with over 2,000 tackles (he is the NFL leader tackler for the 2000s decade).
While Fletcher maybe not in the same class as his contemporaries Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher (both certain future Hall of Famers), he is still considered one of the top active defensive players in the game. He has drawn comparision to the late Sam Mills, also an undersized, undrafted linebacker from a small school (Montclair State) who starred for the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers from 1986-1997, and like Fletcher, retired at the age of 38. We have only two weekends to watch him play, and while the Redskins are one of the worst teams this season, it's a good reason to see their games.