DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Peppers wants to play in a 3-4.

So you're saying Haynesworth isn't a playmaker? If Albert and Shaun are paired up together they would potentially take up 3-4 blockers on every play thus freeing up our LB's to blitz and make tackles at or behind the line of scrimmage. Plus, with these two guys there would be a chance of colapsing the pocket from the middle on any given play. Don't get me wrong, Peppers is a special talent but I would rather fork out the big bucks for someone who has already played the position at a Pro Bowl level versus someone making the transition to a new position.

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so which do you take in free agency? peppers or suggs?

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You take either one but if the option is there to pick, I would take Suggs... if for no other reason, he's 2 years younger...

I said why spend big money on someone that probably won't be used as a playmaker. Besides, the consensus here was that the Dline wasn't a weakness, in spite of injuries, and 2 starters playing 3-4 the first time. It doesn't seem wise to spend more money on a unit that wasn't weak, when other units are weak.

"I get the impression that Ryan will run a defense that has the linebackers making the plays."

Yep, its called a 3-4 - I know we haven't seen it much here. (being sarcastic but more because we've been playing it and haven't seen it...rather than insulting you on not seeing us playing a 3-4)

As far as what side....I see him on the Strong side which is considered the guy over outside the Right Tackle. This is where the power running guys are. This is where a FB has to try to seal off the OLB or a TE or a Pulling OG or OT. I can see Peppers stopping the run by taking on the blockers and making the team pay.

As a pass rusher...sure you lose the blind side Fumble maker but now you create a visual threat causing hesitation and one with the power to crash inside if the RT over steps out and in the past Wimbley is OH SO CLOSE to getting his hands on the QB but there is pressure from no where else. Now with hesitation and possibly the QB stepping towards the Weakside only to meet instead of avoid Wimbley.

Also having Wimbley on the opposite side from where he has spent his entire career. I've seen him there once or twice and he just doesn't have that Gumby move with the other shoulder. Peppers is use to using his right shoulder and Wimbley is use to using his left shoulder....now you are talking about switching both. On paper maybe a good idea? But in football maybe too much change to be good.

JMHO

Good post.......

In the 3-4, the LBers are the straw that stirs the drink. I would take Peppers in a heartbeat, but all indications are that he is going to want to break the bank.

I know really a tough call. But all I keep thinking about is Reggie White - he was so close to becoming a Brown. Would Peppers be our Reggie White.

And what if we tied a big portion of the package to come after the NFLPA agreement has expired...especially a big portion to be on that one year? Taking a chance we will go one season with no Cap...and isn't the last year 2010 have no cap? maybe we can load up the hit for 2010 which I think was to be like an experiment by the owners to show restraint on a possibly NO CAP system.

??? As mentioned tough one to call and I can make strong arguments for both sides.

JMH

That works either way. You take Peppers on one side, and itll just take attention away from Wimbley because hes been so non-existant the last two years, and maybe he'll rediscover his talent. Plus youll have Julius Peppers there to help him out in general.

The more I think about Julius Peppers in a Browns uniform the more i like it. I really hope we make a strong push.

I think the most exciting part about it, is that we'd be giving him a chance to do what he wants to do. And if the 3-4 is something he wants to be a part of, i think that he will immerse himself into it, and with our coaching staff, the transition should be nearly seamless. from both sides, I see Peppers putting enough effort into becoming a wonderful 3-4 OLB. He has all the tools

If we sign Peppers, which is possible

The we have to spend our 1st rd pick on Jenkins out of OS Cornerback...thats only IF we land Peppers...he is very versatile and a force

the guy can play OLB or DE....and excell at both...he has the speed and he drops into coverage often in Caronlian from the stand up position and excelled

Peppers is a no brainer, if he is willing to come here, sign him...he is the pass rusher we are missing to help make Wimbley's life easier

then our 1st rd pick goes on Jenkins from OSU for Corner...Jenkins + Wright with Holy and Mcdonald as depth makes our Corners in fine shape

2nd rd pick is best LB on the Board
3rd pick best OL on the board
4th Rd pick best DL

sign i mid-tier DL
sign 1 mid-tier LB

and we may win this division

Is there even a hint from HIM that he would consider Cleveland, and what kind of money will we be throwing into the wind,...?

It just smacks of the Willie Mac experiment.

The guy is a great talent, no doubt. Is it a better gamble than any other ? Probably.

Where is our GM ?????

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It just smacks of the Willie Mac experiment.

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Willie Mac was 34/35 years old when he came to Cleveland.. Peppers would be 29/30 years old.... there's still a lot of good football left in Peppers, not sure I could have said that about McGinest...

I don't care about his age. There is no guarantee of results. That's all I'm saying is similar.

I'd just rather save my money on a pick than gamble it --MUCH OF IT-- away to a high demanding FA. And you still have the adjustment to make,...Peppers has the talent though.

GM/Coach EM's call, not mine.

"It just smacks of the Willie Mac experiment."

??? What experiment. I actually do not see one similarity except for the position in question between those two individuals. A 35, 36, 37 year old Willie Mac who came to us with 5 years of experience.

Woah wait a minute...thank you. I know you didn't mean to prove a point... but you actually did.

Willie Mac was 30 years old in 2001 (actually 29 then turned 30 in Dec.) - Prior to that the Pats played a 4-3. It was in 2001 under RAC as DC and Ryan as LB coach that he was converted into a 3-4 LB.

Actually you are correct it does smack of the Willie MAC well not experiment but conversion to the 3-4 except Peppers would be over a year younger in the process. If it smacks of that - that would mean Peppers would have 5 good Pro-Bowlish years at least manning our OLB position.

btw - McG was probably our most consistent and disciplined LB in the process the last 3 seasons. His results probably would have been more positively noticeable if the entire unit (especially the front 7) played like a disciplined unit.

JMHO

More than just the 3/4 Id like to see Peppers as an end in our nickel packages

yep...him Hall and Wimbley

All well and fine. I just don't see spending the money.

One more time, not my call.

and I can definitely agree with that...actually I have said that in this thread. I can go both ways.

JMHFlip Flop

If we get the guy, OK fine, I just don't want "it" to become another WM,...I think that was a failed mess, and by that I mean no playoff games. Bottom line.

Why bring up Willie again...lol I tried so hard to stay away from that. "I just don't want "it" to become another WM,...I think that was a failed mess, and by that I mean no playoff games. Bottom line."

You have said that twice...do me a favor can you give anything to back your opinion on the "Failed Mess" Willie McG was? outside of your no playoff statement which was really void of any logic?

I tried to stay out....and you Sucked me back in

*pops some popcorn*

*waits*

How is "no playoffs" void of logic ? You make it sound as though I blame just Willie for that, and that is not my intent.

We got nothing out of having him around other than spending big money. At least we (me ?) didn't get what we anticpated what might or could have been. That's just how I see it. DOESN'T make it true. But 4-12 is a fact. Bottom line. I don't hate the man; he's a GREAT character guy. And hopefully now, a retired one.

I don't want that to happen with JP (and I don't think it will) or any other player.

"We got nothing out of having him around other than spending big money."

We didn't spend big money...and in his 3 years we were not in cap hell.

Sure Savage made an excuse for not going for Ty Law when RAC asked but we had the bucks... but Ty Law who probably plays older than McG for his position.

Then we come down to actual play. McG earned his money. He played well. He led like we expected him to and even better. The Young OLB's seemed to play well their rookie years when he took them under his wing. Wimbley and Hall.

He was the only LB that played our Disciplined Defense...with what do you know...Discipline. He led by expample and in the big games he showed up.

He played hurt and at his age those games showed. This last season he remained healthy and was his best year with us. His Pass rushing skills had eroded. This is true. Thats why he is retiring. But I fail to see any proof of him coming here as a "Failed" experiment nor a Mess.

JMHO

Peppers would thrive in a 3-4.

He has the speed and experience in limited coverage plays. He has the power to bullrush and speed to speed rush.

He rarely got the chance to run uncovered in a 4-3 defense. In a 3-4 he would...just like Harrison, Woodley and Timmons do. He also has the same "Wreckless abandon" approach to rushing.

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He has the speed and experience in limited coverage plays. He has the power to bullrush and speed to speed rush.

He rarely got the chance to run uncovered in a 4-3 defense. In a 3-4 he would...just like Harrison, Woodley and Timmons do. He also has the same "Wreckless abandon" approach to rushing.

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I see just as you do. Julius Peppers is a bonafide stud. Once he is on your team it is improved. Seeing him with a couple step head start would be a thing of beauty. He can bull rush with his hand down, imagine with a slight head of steam, not to mention he has plenty of pass rushing moves.

Him, Rogers, and Williams is a heck of a base for the 3-4. I am also inclined to believe that Ryan can do something with Wimbley. I don't think he was properly coached. But with Peppers coming from the other side, and Rogers pushing the middle, I would think that Wimbley would be quite the benefactor. Draft a stud for the inside and bamm...crap I just drooled on myself.

Hmmm, does Carolina need another receiver, or a pass catching TE? How about another QB that likes to throw picks? If so maybe we can work a trade to lessen the financial imapct of his aqcuisition.

I'm not completely sure on how it works, but I dont think that would work for us. His contract is up the day free agency starts, and I'm not sure you can make trades before then. However, I could be wrong there being that we got Rogers and Williams before FA, but, those guys both had years left on their contracts.

I mean, Peppers becomes a free agent that day, so to trade would be pointless, itd be us giving up something to get something we're already going to have to sign.

Anybody that has ever watched Julius Peppers play should not be concerned about him switching posistion. The guy is an absolute freak. Peppers, as is, already drops back in coverage better than most OLB, and thats from a defensive end position and no coaching whatsoever as a LB. I've seen this guy drop into coverage from his end spot, intercept the pass in the flat and outrun a tailback 60 yards for a touchdown.

70 sacks in 7 seasons. Whoever takes the chance on him next year will say he is worth every penny.

Yeah, I totally agree....he is one of those players that are just that good....I don't think he will have any trouble in a 3-4 at all.......what I don't like is him wanting to go to a contender.....and that contender being Pitt, or Baltimore......boy would that uck........

I would absolutely love to sign Julius. The guy is such a specimen. Knowing our luck, he'd blow out his knee in TC.

I see absolutely no way that he comes here. I know money talks, but he'll get his money anywhere he goes, and there's plenty of other attractive options. I imagine he'll seek out a contender...outside of money, the only real attraction we can offer him is Shaun Rogers...Rogers and Peppers. Man...

How many 3-4 D's are there in the league anyway?

so do the Dolphins

So it's safe to say, NE, SD, Balt, Pitt would be contenders in the Peppers pool.....

I doubt Balt. (unless it doesn't resign Suggs) or Pitt. (they have Woodley and Harrison) go after Peppers.

My guess would be NE, SD, or possibly Miami.

was just reading a story Michael Silver posted on yahoo.com about peppers and he even mentioned us as a possible landing spot for him....that would be great if he did...here is what he wrote:

6. Salty Peppers: In the wake of his team’s upset loss to the Cardinals in the divisional playoffs, the Panthers’ star pass rusher, Julius Peppers, said he wanted out of Carolina. The departures of defensive coordinator Mike Trgovac and defensive-line coach Sal Sunseri created some hope among fans that Peppers, who apparently wants to play in a 3-4 defense, might be persuaded to stick around. Don’t be fooled. Be it by trade (if the Panthers choose to franchise him for $16.683 million over one year) or unrestricted free agency, Peppers almost certainly will be suiting up elsewhere in ’09. Just as the Vikings viewed Kansas City’s Jared Allen as a potential game-changer last April, trading a first-round pick and a pair of third-rounders before signing him to a huge long-term deal, someone will step up and do what it takes to get Peppers. Don’t rule out the Browns, who might be looking to make a splash in Year One of the Eric Mangini Regime


So there must be some kind of feeling that he would want to come here or else he wouldnt have wrote us down....or maybe he is just trying to get us all excited eh?

While I would love to have Peppers here at Cleveland.....I just don't think it would help us as much as I once thought...the good thing is he is a free agent, so we wouldn't have to trade Carolina a 1st, and 2 3rd's to get him..unless they Franchise him.....if that happens, then absolutely not......but even if they don't, he would be like Pac-man and our salary cap would be the power pellets....he would just gobble it all up.....

Why would we pay big $$ on a guy who has no real experience in the 34 when we can pay the same (or perhaps less) money for a guy in Suggs who was a Pro Bowler OLB in the 34??

I want no part of Peppers or any other project.

While I can understand you not wanting him for various reason, I don't think Peppers could be called a "project" .

He can play no matter where we played him.

Yeah that was probably a little strong, and bad wording on my part. My point is it's stupid to pay a guy the same (or perhaps more) $$$ to play a position that he has never played before, over a guy who has proven to be a Pro Bowler at said position. If Suggs for some reason wasn't out there I could see us making a run at Peppers. However, with a proven Pro Bowler we would be ignorant to consider a guy who has never played the position...............for the same or more money no less.

Thats cool....like I said, I understand the reasons.

We aren't going to get him, so it doesn't really matter....but I think he could play 3-4 DE and play it better than anyone we currently have.

Carolina is going to tag him one way or another...they aren't just going to let him walk without getting something in return.