fox defend staff use of peppers.

[monstercat]

Exactly!

I think that even if Trgo stays around the defense will actually improve now that he's no longer trying all kinds of different things in an effort to get his star to actually play like one.

Yeah, I have always been a Peppers fan, but I just don't see how anybody can claim that the Panthers didn't use him in just about every way possible. He had one sack in that second Saints game and he was coming from just about every direction and every position in that game, and he was doing it from the 3 point stance as well as standing up and with a running start on many plays. How much more creative can you get than that?

[carpanfan96]

Pep is good as gone if fox stays. Fox's comments pretty much seal that one up. even us franchising and then trading pep plus keeping gross is going to be difficult if not impossible. we just don't have the cap space for both deals. we are going to be losing more then just pep on defense in the offseason if we plan on trading pep after a franchise tag. Us letting pep walk for nothing is looking more and more like a likely scenario.

[charlottenian]

And let the best DE in the NFL go.

you lose credibility when you say things like that

[Snake]

I'm a big Jake supporter. Simply pointing out facts. Pep was 5th in the league in sacks, had FORTY TWO quarterback hurries, with minimal help throughout the line, and a soft coverage scheme...for SIXTEEN games!!!!

I also dont believe in blasting Jake when the guy had the worst game of his career, and has won many more games than he has lost. Just using Jake as a reference point in that he was more to blame with his play, and the defensive scheme was more to blame, than Peppers failing to record a sack.

Im not saying the scheme was not bad cause it was but Brayton and Johnson were getting pressure and the Cards chose to leave pep one on one and double team the inside and Johnson. In other games when they left Pep one on one he has the same problem. Im not much of a stat guy when it comes to CBs and DE cause they do so much more then just get sacks and INTs and pep has not been himself in a long time. Yea he's got the numbers but in the games we lost he was just shut out and didnt even seem like he wanted to play when the guy on the other side of him was atleast getting close to the QB.

[panthers55]

One advantage of Peppers being gone? We will be forced to do more scheming and gameplanning. We can't try to overpower them with athletic ability like we could when Peppers, Rucker and Jenkins were here. We will be forced to get more aggressive or have fewer sacks than we did in 2007. We will have to rely more on scheme to confuse them and give us straight runs to the quarterback. Execution will still have to be there but it can be decent execution for results instead of now it takes almost perfection execution to make even a routine play. Holes and gaps everywhere.

[carpanfan96]

Im not saying the scheme was not bad cause it was but Brayton and Johnson were getting pressure and the Cards chose to leave pep one on one and double team the inside and Johnson. In other games when they left Pep one on one he has the same problem. Im not much of a stat guy when it comes to CBs and DE cause they do so much more then just get sacks and INTs and pep has not been himself in a long time. Yea he's got the numbers but in the games we lost he was just shut out and didnt even seem like he wanted to play when the guy on the other side of him was atleast getting close to the QB.

I think pep hasn't looked like himself because he didn't want to play for fox. Point blank and simple.

[Cyberjag]

One advantage of Peppers being gone? We will be forced to do more scheming and gameplanning. We can't try to overpower them with athletic ability like we could when Peppers, Rucker and Jenkins were here. We will be forced to get more aggressive or have fewer sacks than we did in 2007. We will have to rely more on scheme to confuse them and give us straight runs to the quarterback. Execution will still have to be there but it can be decent execution for results instead of now it takes almost perfection execution to make even a routine play. Holes and gaps everywhere.

Good post, and I think the bolded part is Trgovac's biggest failing. He depends on great execution from those guys, but no longer has the talent in that unit.

[carpanfan96]

Good post, and I think the bolded part is Trgovac's biggest failing. He depends on great execution from those guys, but no longer has the talent in that unit.

agree, he's just like fox in that he can't adapt and change his scheme or plan.

[Snake]

I think pep hasn't looked like himself because he didn't want to play for fox. Point blank and simple.

I agree. I think also with great talent comes big ego's. Who's gonna say Im wrong when I say Smith has a huge ego but uses it in a good way.

[carpanfan96]

I agree. I think also with great talent comes big ego's. Who's gonna say Im wrong when I say Smith has a huge ego but uses it in a good way.

I'd say your right, smith has the most drive of any player I've seen in a while. sometimes it gets him into trouble. I personally like the fire that smith has.

[carpanfan96]

was us picking up taylor a sign of things to come. getting another speed rusher for the outside in a similar mold as peppers. (less athletic but he might have more heart which could mean the difference between good and great) I wonder did our staff have an idea that this was coming after last season..

[CAPantherFan]

I don't think Fox saw this coming. After he was told Pep said that he didn't think he was being used to his potential Fox didn't believe it until he heard it from Pep's own mouth.

When asked to respond to statements by Peppers’ agent, Carl Carey, that Peppers wants to move on to another team and believes he must do so to reach his full potential as a player, Fox told the Observer:

“All I can say is we’ve got other options and we’re going to do what’s best for our football team. I haven’t heard that from Julius’ mouth, so I’m figuring it’s all speculation. I can’t say it isn’t true. … But we have other options.”

[CAPantherFan]

I don't think Hurney saw this coming.

http://blogs.charlotte.com/panthers/2009/01/hurney-disappointed-but-plans-to-keep-talking.html

urney "disappointed," but plans to keep talking

Panthers general manager Marty Hurney just issued this satement about the Julius Peppers situation through team spokesman Charlie Dayton after Peppers' agent, Carl Carey, said Peppers wants to move on to another team after his contract expires Feb. 26:

"Obviouly, Carl's comments are disappointing. We have consistently reiterated to Carl in a number of ways how much we value Julius and we plan to continue having ongoing communication."

Carey said Peppers won't sign a long-term contract extension with the Panthers now or in the future and believes he needs to move to another team to reach his full potential as a player.

The Panthers could opt to franchise Peppers in order to trade him or to convince him to play under a one-year tender offer.

-- Charles Chandler

[CAPantherFan]

In fact, I don't think either Fox nor Hurney saw this coming at all. They're definitely scrambling now.

This is going to be interesting.