Last December, at the microphone of his podcast show Let’s go!, Tom Brady asked Christian McCaffrey what element of his game made him the best running back in the NFL. His answer ? “My blocks. »
No one here is going to compare Walter Fletcher, the running back of the Montreal Alouettes, to the NFL’s offensive player par excellence. However, they have in common their ability to shine without having the magnetic ball to their chest.
Asked how to explain Fletcher’s progression, quarterback Cody Fajardo credited his teammate with the same qualities put forward by McCaffrey.
“The most important thing he does, I think, is all the work when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands. It’s pass protection, it’s blocking high up the field for the receivers. […] These are details that fans probably don’t see, but it helps us become a better team,” he listed on the eve of the Als’ first game at Percival-Molson Stadium since their conquest of the Gray Cup.
PHOTO JASON FRANSON, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Cody Fajardo
When training camp opened in May, there was talk of a three-way battle between Jeshrun Antwi, Sean Thomas-Erlington and Fletcher to replace William Stanback in the backfield.
Speaking with general manager Danny Maciocia, we understand between the lines that Fletcher had a head start. However, only one element of his game was lacking and worrying enough to leave him fighting with the other two candidates, Maciocia revealed in the corridors of the Olympic Stadium on Wednesday.
The question was whether he was going to be able to improve in his pass protection. And during camp, he did just that. We think we have a full carrier who is hungry.
Danny Maciocia
The main person concerned was not unduly destabilized by this order. “I struggled in college with pass protection,” Fletcher admits.
He has therefore made it his duty, since his arrival in the CFL in 2021, to refine this phase of the game. “At my first training in the league, veterans told me: if you don’t block, you don’t play. not. You can score a 90-yard touchdown, but if you don’t protect your quarterback, it won’t work. »
Patience and work
On June 14, 2022, Maciocia traded a sixth-round pick to acquire Fletcher from the Edmonton Elks. A necessary transaction, because Stanback had just been injured for the umpteenth time.
“He’s able to run with the ball, run out of the backfield and catch the ball,” the general manager said.
In hindsight, “being traded here changed my career,” says the American.
PHOTO JOSIE DESMARAIS, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Montreal Alouettes general manager Danny Maciocia
It was impossible at the time of the transaction to predict how the Columbia, Maryland native and former Ball State University student would develop and, above all, how he would stand out.
For two seasons, the 27-year-old champed at the bit while waiting for Stanback to leave. However, it was used in very specific situations last season. “Will is a very powerful guy, he wanted to get through players. And there, Fletcher runs around the players and is able to explode,” explains offensive lineman Kristian Matte.
This is why, by now acting as the starting ball carrier, Fletcher has changed a little, in his own way, the dynamic of the Alouettes’ attack. Even if offensive coordinator Anthony Calvillo confirms that nothing has changed in the playbook and in the offensive system since Fletcher’s promotion, he still offers different options to Fajardo.
Aware of the role that was going to be entrusted to him in this season motivated by the defense of a championship, the running back used great means to accentuate his preparation. He returned to his home state to train at Under Armor’s headquarters in Baltimore.
“I wanted to add weight to my frame to be able to take all the hits of an 18-game season and the playoffs. I worked on my mobility, my stability, my flexibility to reduce the risk of injury. »
The season is only two games old, but that investment is already paying dividends.
The outbreak
After the first two weeks of activity, Fletcher is third among CFL players in rushing yards with 118.
During the first match, he was a little shy. On the other hand, he was the Alouettes’ spearhead in attack the following week.
Walter Fletcher ran with the ball 12 times in each of his two games. In the first, he had 36 yards. In the second, he responded with 82 yards and a touchdown.
Hence the sudden interest of the media and fans in the player registered at 5’7″ and 206 lbs. “I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself. It’s still football,” he replies when asked how he negotiates with this new notoriety and this new role.
Even though Fletcher blossomed and showed the full extent of his abilities last week in Edmonton, Maciocia still expects “a little bit more from him.” But if he plays up to his boss’s expectations, watch out for opposing defenses, warns the general manager: “When he feels that he is in his place, that he has a say on the offensive plan, we’re really going to see the Fletcher effect on the Alouettes. »
The match between the Ottawa Rouge et Noir and the Alouettes will be broadcast on RDS and TSN3 this Thursday at 7:30 p.m.