The question was going to come up sooner or later, and since Carl Carey (Peppers' agent) is determined to make this an issue of sooner, rather than later we might as well hash out this discussion at CSR.

Much like last week's discussion about the Panthers drafting a QB lets keep this civil folks, don't forget the new ToS. It's hot button topics like this and the ensuing conversation that often pushed the ToS to its limits.

Roughly a month back I asked how much Peppers was worth to the Panthers. Now it appears we have a ballpark figure of what Peppers and Carey think he should be paid. The question to you, the fans, is if Peppers is worth it.

There's no denying that Julius Peppers has amazing talent, but it's never his talent that has come into question it's his work ethic and desire. He seems to still be somewhat of an enigma, as I feel Julius still hasn't reached his full potential. For a long time I've said Peppers could be the most dominant defensive player to ever play in the National Football league. I truly believe that Pep could be more of a force between the hash marks than Lawrence Taylor was, but I still don't really believe he has the desire to be that player.

Now, to put this issue in perspective let's look at the 5 highest defensive ends in the NFL, as well as Albert Haynesworth, who while not a DE, is the highest paid defensive player in the NFL and the mark that Peppers would top.

So, let the discussion begin. Is Julius Peppers worth being paid more than not only all 5 of the top paid DEs, but also more than Haynesworth's $100 million deal?