Every week, Redskins.com chats with a Redskins coach about a hot topic. This week: assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams discusses the Redskins' linebackers:
"In the short time that he has been here, London Fletcher has really shown an ability to avoid blockers and get to the ball-carrier. That takes a combination of instinct and experience. When London first came into the league, he ran into the blocks. Now he knows how to fight them off.
"I don't ever want to hear a coach tell a player on defense that they have got to leverage a block over the ball. A block doesn't score and doesn't get a first down. The ball does. Ray Lewis was one of the guys I really studied early in his career for his ability to avoid blocks, and London does a very good job of that too.
"That only comes through experience and the natural instincts that London has.
"London has really made a difference so far, but it's going to make more than one guy. It has to be all 11 players executing together. One guy can be the catalyst, but everybody has to do their job.
"We can't blow it out of proportion, and say that London Fletcher is going to take the other team on. He has to do his job, and part of his job is trying to help make the other guys play up to their potential.
"Rocky McIntosh graded out very well. He snapped linemen's heads back. He snapped fullbacks' heads back. He ran to the football. Not only did he strike the blocks when he had to, but he was able to make plays on the ball-carrier when he had too as well.
"There was an offensive tackle that came out and just cut Rocky. He hit the ground and got right back up like lightening, just like our up-down drills, fighting and hit the ball-carrier for no gain. I wish I could say I coached that, but it has nothing to do with me. That's all Rocky.
"The coverage things that he was a little bit behind on last year have really improved. He had a couple of errors in the scrimmage against Baltimore, but the very next week we didn't see them rise up again. He's correcting them.
"Rocky is very coach-able. It's one thing for a coach to force something down your throat, but on Sunday morning after the Tennessee preseason game, Rocky was in here bright and early before the coaches started grading the film.
"He goes through the practices. He goes through the game film. He comes in and gets individual things because he wants to know and wants to be really good.
"That's special. I really appreciate his energy and his urgency in wanting to improve because I think he has a chance to be really good."
