Postulating Where Peppers Will Land: Miami?

by Jaxon on Feb 21, 2009 9:12 AM EST Comment 14 comments

For the next week we all get to postulate what team might be the one to trade for Panthers DE Julius Peppers. I might as well get it started. After visiting some of the other SBN blogs I quickly concluded that there is not a single fan base out there that is excited about ponying up the asking price for Peppers. So my short list of potential teams is strictly my best guess at this point and nothing more. I fully expect fans from the teams I focus on to chime with a big "Hell no!".

Its also easy to conclude that last years Jared Allen trade will be the yardstick for which the pending Peppers trade will be measured. In theory Peppers should bring more than a 1^st and two 3rds because he brings more to the table. Peppers is better in coverage, led the league in forced fumbles and can block kicks on special teams. Plus he has always been given more props just for his impressive measurables and athletic ability. But this is a different time and given the recession many owners should certainly be worried that revenues will shrink in the coming year. The market just may not be what it was.

So my best guesses are based on teams that the Panthers would not have a problem with ie...NFC South, have a 1^st round pick, have enough cap space and run a 3-4, though I'm not convinced Peppers will limit himself to 3-4 teams.

The first potential trade partner is the Miami Dolphins. Miami is rumored to be one of 4 teams on Peppers ‘list', they are in the AFC and run a 3-4. Plus they have the cap room to sign Peppers. On the negative side is this isn't a typical Bill Parcels move and I'm also not enamored with their #25 pick. That draft spot comes after several teams looking to draft defense including NFC South brethren Tampa Bay and Atlanta. The best two DE's and DT's will most likely be off the board. Of course the Panthers could package some picks to move up in a trade...say with...the Eagles? We know the Panthers love to trade on draft day.

So what do you think the odds are of Peppers ending up in Miami?

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From SBN Truth and Rumors - author unknown

I think Julius Peppers is gone. The Panthers can tie him up and lock him down. But I don’t expect them to. The rules say that a team has to give the Panthers two first-round draft picks. The rules lie. The Minnesota Vikings gave Kansas City one first-round pick and two-third round picks before the 2008 season for their star franchise pass rusher, Jared Allen. Both Peppers and Allen had 14 1/2 sacks last season. If the Panthers, who are coming off two strong drafts, can get three picks, one in the first round, for Peppers, they should jump. The Panthers will take the best deal they can get. There are some intriguing combinations. My source wouldn’t identify the four teams on Peppers’ list. He would say only that one of the teams was Dallas, that one was in the AFC and two were teams to which the Panthers would not want to trade Peppers. The latter indicates that the teams are on Carolina’s schedule next season. The AFC team? I’d guess Miami, Houston or New England.

by usana_gaines on Feb 21, 2009 10:14 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

As I suspected Dolphin fans don't want to consider it

And say there is no way they will trade picks for Peppers. Sure they could right but then again every team has a price they WOULD be willing to pay.

Anyone have any suggestions on which team we should focus on next?

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Feb 21, 2009 12:02 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Denver.

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by UtesFan89 on Feb 21, 2009 12:26 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Is Denver switching to a 3-4?

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Feb 21, 2009 1:16 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I found the answer myself: Yes

Here’s a good post at Mile High Report on this topic.

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Feb 21, 2009 1:26 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Perfect fit

It would be good for him to go to Denver. I personally believe that he wants to stay somewhere in the south where it is warm. I believe, don’t quote me, but he is friends with Melo and would like a city like Denver where he could get his attention he desires while hitting it off with some of the bigshots and celebrities that go there.

by GMallory on Feb 21, 2009 7:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Matty I at Phinsider makes a very good point

Why would a 3-4 team invest that kind of money on a guy they won’t know if he can play OLB in a 3-4? What if it doesn’t work? They would have to move him to the DE position which in a 3-4 is not a good spot for him at 280 lbs. That is a lot of risk. I bet only a 4-3 team gives him the $ he is looking for.

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Feb 21, 2009 1:15 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Good post! I'll disagree with you on the cost though. We'll be lucky to get a 1st and a 3rd rounder for him.

And don’t believe all this talk about the Panthers not wanting to shop Peppers around. We all know how this works. The team comes out and says that they want to keep Peppers. He’s a brilliant member of the organization and yada yada yada.

Of course they’re going to do that. To admit that they want to trade him is to lower is value. Trust me, they’re shopping him around.

"Once again the trowsers of evil are yanked down by the mocking hands of justice!"-Revshawn

by Revshawn on Feb 21, 2009 9:00 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

trade him to the Jets

they are my secondary NFL team and if he’s not going to play for the Bucs (why god?) then he might as well play for the Jets. They don’t necessarily have the cap space, but they’re in the AFC, play in a 3-4, and need help desperately on defense…

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by JScott on Feb 21, 2009 10:36 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Reunite him with his buddy Kris Jenkins

I blog the Carolina Panthers at www.catscratchreader.com

by Jaxon on Feb 22, 2009 12:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

playing for the jets

There are so many rumors about the Jets that you can’t really know what is true or not. One rumor is that they are gonna go after Ray Lewis. I think Ray Lewis is still a monster on defense, but they have David Harris. They also have Kris Jenkins. A defense with Harris, Jenkins, Peppers and Lewis could be one of the best, and definitely one of the most expensive. If that’s their plan, though, then we know why they’re not going after a QB…no money left.

by usana_gaines on Feb 22, 2009 7:33 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Two things

First, they’re playing the 3-4, so they’ll need another LB next to Harris in the middle (with Gholston & Peppers(?)) on the outside.

Second, another reason for not going after a QB is that there is no one out there that is worth it.

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by UtesFan89 on Feb 22, 2009 6:31 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

AFC

There is nothing more I would like to see than Peppers going to an AFC team. I just hope there’s an AFC team either stupid enough or rich enough that’s willing to take a gamble on whether or not he can play in a 3-4 scheme.

Personally, I feel Peppers will bomb on a 3-4 defense and look like a complete fool.

I really can’t see him going to Dallas however, as the Cowboys don’t have the cap space, and more importantly don’t even have one number 1 draft pick for this season. The Panthers are trying to recoop the first round pick they traded to Philly last season to get Otah.

Forget trading him to an NFC South team. I really hope Panthers management isn’t that crazy. He might not be traded until draft day. I agree with Jaxon on that one for sure.

by panthersfan2 on Feb 22, 2009 3:24 PM EST reply actions 0 recs