FanPost

Who is Nathan Vasher?


Given that this guy is a veteran and played for Chicago I thought folks might be more familiar with him and therefore I did not dig into much of his background. However since there seems to be little buzz about him and little knowledge I will try to sum him up here. As usual I will be learning along with you as I write this, so first I will dump out my preconceived notions and then I will try to find info to backup what he is or is not.

What I know about Vasher is that he was a corner on Chicago in the past and was eventually replaced by Bowman, their current starter. He had a pro bowl year, i believe it was based on getting 8 interceptions, and Lovie Smith nicknamed him "the interceptor". After that season he was injured and possibly due to the injuries he bulked up a bit, to be stronger against the run. He was trying to come back and was injured again and somewhere along the way of those two injuries seemed to lose his confidence as well. Chicago opted for the younger and more promising Bowman and the rest there is history. He had a brief stint with San Diego and there was some buzz about him in this years off season. For some reason he did not make the Chargers team. I will be learnign why along with the rest of you.

Interesting tidbits from his wiki.

He played both wide receiver and corner back in high school.

In three years at Texas he intercepted 17 passes which tied the school record. He spent one year at strong safety and two at corner back. He earned All-American honors as a punt returner with the Longhorns.

He was drafted in the 4th round of the 2004 draft and played backup to Charles Tillman until an injury forced him to start. In 2005 he led the NFC in interceptions with 8 and went to the Pro Bowl. In 2006 he had a down year due to injuries only intercepting 3 passes. He did play a pivotal role in the Bears NFC Championship win over the Saints by recovering a fumble and intercepting Brees late in the game. In the Super Bowl he limited Marvin Harrison to 50 yards receiving and assisted on a Chris Harris interception. In 2007 he was rewarded with a long term contract and injured his groin in the 3rd game of the year. After missing 10 games he returned in his first game to intercept a pass and assist on one to Urlacher. He continued to struggle with injuries and lost his starting job in 2009 to Bowman. On March 17th, 2010 the Bears cut him.

On March 29th 2010 he was signed to a two year contract by the Chargers. They released him in September and he signed with the Lions on the September 13th.

Vasher was considered the team's longterm solution at cornerback when he was signed to a five-year contract extension before the 2007 season. His play declined soon after signing the deal, which a source close to the former Pro Bowl performer attributed to a "lack of confidence." Another team source said Vasher, who has 19 career interceptions, but had no more than one in any of the past three seasons, was suffering from a lack of "aggressiveness."

http://blogs.suntimes.com/bears/2010/03/bears_release_nathan_vasher.html

Healthy last season, he made only two starts and it was clear Angelo wasn't going to carry him into this season as a backup with a base salary of $2.95 million.

One team that might be quick to kick the tires on him is San Diego. Defensive coordinator Ron Rivera has collected ex-Bears players and coaches and the Chargers are seeking a corner after trading Antonio Cromartie.

For a period, Vasher was considered one of the real finds of the Angelo era, a fourth-round pick out of Texas in 2004. He started seven games as a rookie and as he made 13 interceptions in his first two seasons, he earned the nickname "The Interceptor" from coach Lovie Smith.

He set what, at the time, was an NFL record with a 108-yard return of a missed field goal by the 49ers' Joe Nedney on a windy afternoon at Soldier Field in 2005, the year he was selected to the Pro Bowl.

But after earning the lucrative extension in a summer when the Bears also locked up fellow cornerback Charles Tillman long-term, Vasher never was the same player. He bulked up to help play the run better and lost some of his quickness. He couldn't stay healthy and the team was forced to use a pair of options that didn't pan out in Trumaine McBride and Corey Graham. In moved Zack Bowman last year and the series of plays he made during the offseason and his size at 6 feet 1 quickly made him a favorite.

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2010-03-17/sports/ct-spt-0318-bears-chicago--20100317_1_afternoon-at-soldier-field-bears-pro-bowl

As a Charger now, he'll join a secondary that is looking for a nickel cornerback to emerge now that Antoine Cason is being moved outside opposite Quentin Jammer. Jammer and Vasher are both former Texas Longhorns who were at one point teammates in college.

The signing of Vasher looks like a good move for the Chargers, as they have seemed to make it clear they do not want to rely on a rookie cornerback to start in nickel packages. With Vasher and Strickland now in the fold, the Chargers will likely scratch cornerback off of their draft day to-do list.

http://www.bolthype.com/2010/03/chargers-sign-cornerback-nathan-vasher.html

Chargers released CB Nathan Vasher.

Bad news for Vasher, who has now been cut by both the Bears and the Chargers this offseason. He couldn't beat out Donald Strickland for the nickel job and it's obvious his skills are on major decline. The Chargers decided to go with Fred Bennett instead.
http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_previousnews.aspx?sport=nfl&id=2826
Lions placed CB Aaron Berry (shoulder) on injured reserve, ending his season.
Berry suffered a right shoulder injury last year at Pitt, but he never underwent surgery. He'll need to under the knife now after aggravating the injury in the opener. The undrafted rookie had taken over as the starting nickel back. The Lions signed veteran Nate Vasher as a replacement.
http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_main.aspx?sport=NFL&id=6287

So if you follow the press clippings it shows that Nathan was a promising young corner that went to a pro bowl and signed a decent contract. After that injuries and possibly losing speed, confidence, or aggressiveness caused him to be outplayed by Bowman in Chicago. He made to much to be a backup and was cut. The Chargers have a couple of people familiar with him and they gave him a shot. It did not work out.


The link above about Berry is there to help people understand the time lines here, because Vasher was brought in before Berry aggrevated his shoulder in the Chicago game. The Lions knew Berry might have to get surgery and I suspect that he is the one that will be visiting Dr. Andrews to go under the knife. For all we know Stafford could be going down just for a consult since Berry is likely to get his surgery from him. So playing connect the dots and read between the lines sheds some light, but is still speculation.


Bottom line is that he came in to play nickle and compete with Alphonso Smith for the starting Job. We all hope that he can regain some of the glory of his former self. I would advise tempering those hopes though as players who have fallen off rarely can recover and play to that level again. Nathan is a reclamation project and backup plan all in one and I for one will be happy if he just plays solid when he is called upon. Right now I would settle for a solid backup that can come in and play a series without getting burnt for a touchdown.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pride Of Detroit or its writers.