It’s early, but the Panthers aren’t getting much return from the $16.683 million investment they made in defensive end Julius Peppers this season.
Peppers has been quiet in the box score (one sack and 10 tackles), so Scott Fowler of the Charlotte Observer went back through every play of the season to see if Peppers was disrupting the game in other ways.
Judging by Fowler’s results, Peppers’ level of play is no better than the lack of stats indicate.
Peppers has been single blocked on 75% of opponent’s pass plays, but has been unable to win his matchups. He’s disappeared the last two weeks after a strong opening game performance in Carolina’s blowout loss to Philadelphia.
The media isn’t the only one noticing Peppers’ lack of plays. Linebacker Jon Beason said he planned to speak to his teammate this week.
“The pressure is what you want to see — the intensity,” Beason said about Peppers. Beason wants to tell Peppers: “I need
everything you’ve got.”
The start of this season is reminscent of 2007, when Peppers only recorded 2.5 sacks on the season. He’s been a consistent producer otherwise, but the highlight reel plays from early in his career haven’t happened in a while.
Those plays need to come back soon for the Panthers to climb out of their 0-3 hole.
And for Peppers to maximize his contract as a potential free agent next offseason.
Still pouting because he didn’t get out of Carolina!
He’s NO different that all them dam GREEZY layers…that are OVER PAID!
Do you get it now, Pep? You’re getting called out. By everybody. And the entire league is watching.
And if Smitty keeps intentionally running his routes wrong, he’ll be right there with you.
Things could get real ugly in the coming weeks down in Charlotte.
Peppers has no heart. When Beason calls him out, he will go into his shell not to be heard from again. Time to bench him and get Brown and Johnson more playing time.
You posted a story very similar to this already. What’s with the duplicates in the past months?
I don’t blame him, he’s made it clear for over 2 years that he doesn’t want to be in Carolina and that it wasn’t about money. They had offered him a contract to be the highest played player and he turned it down, at that point trade him if you can’t or just accept that it’s not working and let him walk. He fulfilled his contract and now 2 years in a row they franchised him.
The guy who admitted to taking plays off is now taking plays off?
How dare he.
Peppers is good when he is Happy….Right now, He isnt happy….See where this is going???
I suppose it if fair to say any NFL player that is a starter is not playing all that well, but it really is not fair to say Peppers is not worth what he is making.
It is not like he even held out of training camp, but he was on the record saying he did not want to be there, did not want the franchise tag, and did not want to be the highest paid defender in the NFL. How can you blame him for not being worth the money, when he told the media he was not worth it and did not want it?
He doesn’t want to be there. How hard is that to figure out.
I believe the figure is somewhere close to $3,128,062.50 per sack, or $104,268.75 per tackle.
Nice.
Actually, its $312,806.25 per tackle. Very nice.
julianne pfeffers is at her best when playing teams like daytwa.
she cant play against tampa soon enough. and maybe buffalo.
carolina gave up over 320 points last year. that D, and all its players are vastly overrated.
The Panthers received no offers for Peppers, so don’t be fooled by this ” I don’t wan to play in Carolina bs.” No one want to pay what he was trying to get!
As far as the Smith running the wrong route stuff he admitted to running “a” wrong route. So don’t try to blow this out of proportion.
Congrats to the Panthers on paying all that money to a guy that has no chance of being worth it.
Yet another solid personnel decision by Bill Belichick by NOT bringing Peppers to New England. Seems like everyone and their mother was carping about getting Peppers to the Patriots. Apparently, Belichick saw on film what we’re seeing on the field now.
Kidekk – You called it! Slipkid is definitely empty13.
“slipkid says:
julianne pfeffers is at her best when playing teams like daytwa.”
NOBODY uses that inane name “daytwa” but empty. You certainly can spot the inbred, racist morons, Kidekk. Great call.