Free-agent safety Jabrill Peppers has agreed to terms with the New England Patriots. Peppers has played five seasons in the NFL with the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants.
Former Giants’ safety Jabrill Peppers reached agreement on a one-year deal with the New England Patriots, per @MikeReiss and me. Peppers tore his ACL last season and is expected to be ready for the start of training camp.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 29, 2022
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Jabrill Peppers, New England Patriots, Agree to Contract
Peppers’ journey to the NFL began as a two-year starter at Michigan. The Wolverines defensive coaching staff split his time at safety and at the outside linebacker position. They loved utilizing his blazing speed to create havoc in the backfield on designed blitzes. Peppers earned Second-Team All-American honors in his freshman season at Michigan. Also, he won the Lott Trophy, the Paul Hornung Award and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. Peppers was a Heisman Trophy finalist as he played 933 snaps at 15 different positions in his final season at Ann Arbor.
At the NFL Combine, Peppers registered to be evaluated at both the linebacker and safety position. He went on to run a 4.46 40 that opened the eyes of league scouts.
The Browns selected Peppers with the 25th overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft. They penciled him into a hybrid safety/linebacker role because of his athleticism and fierce attitude to take on blockers. Often, Peppers moved up near the line of scrimmage to assist in stopping an opponent’s running game. The Browns were not concerned with his pass defending skills. Often, Peppers looked lost on several pass coverage schemes. His outstanding speed made up the ground needed to defend deep throws downfield.
The safety started all 29 games played with the Browns. Peppers was a tackling machine as he recorded 134 tackles (96 solo tackles), one sack, one interception and four fumble recoveries with Cleveland. Plus, Peppers averaged just over seven yards on punt returns for the Browns.
The Giants acquired Peppers in the blockbuster Odell Beckham Jr. trade. For three seasons, He was the leader of the secondary. Peppers started 30 out of 32 games played with the G-Men. The 2021 campaign was his best season in New York. Peppers recorded 91 tackles, 2.5 sacks, one interception and 11 passes defended in 15 games. He was impactful because of his ability to read offensive formations and make the necessary defensive adjustments before the snap. His 2021 season was cut short after tearing his ACL in a Week 7 home win over the Carolina Panthers.
The future remains unclear for Peppers because of the likelihood that he will not begin the 2022 season on time.
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