Julius Peppers interview from 10/11 on WFNZ

I never told you what to talk about.

I'll retack on this. I agree we'd be better with Peppers. I want him here, but he's not. He didn't want to be here and it sucks he's blaming us when he never showed a willingness to stay, which bothers me a lot more than whether or not they made more attempts at a guy who didn't want to stay.
And we make mistakes. I'm just pleased with what's there on D, for the most part. I get that we disagree on that, and that's fine.

 

ahhhh good times

 

Yeah, it's all good. I don't think we disagree as much as we just seem to argue semantics.

I'm glad the defense is holding their own, and are ranked as good as they are. Thank god they're playing to the level they are with a poor pass rush and mediocre secondary. I'm definitely glad for that.

All in all, I wanted us to push hard for Peppers again. We didn't. I'm pretty mad about that, that we didn't try everything in our power to get something done with him. I understand we did for a minute, and he rebuffed us. But this was a new year. I wanted us to try, and we didn't.

Either way, he's gone, and I won't belabor the point by crying about him over and over again. I was just more responding to the fact that I took it as a few people were saying he wouldn't make a difference on the team we have now. I simply think he would help us get off the field more than we are, and a big splash play here or there could help us win a game. I think we all agreed that he damn near won us a game or two a season.

That deserves a push from management, but whatever. We purged, and we're living with it.

 

I can't disagree with any of that. But, if he'd made any effort to stay, any at all, he'd be here.

 

I agree with that, if Peppers hadda given any indication whatsoever he wanted to stay in Charlotte, he would be here,,,,,,,,,,,,, but he didn't. IMO he has a stupid-ass agent, given some of the things his agent did those last couple years.

 

question is still.. why didn't he want to be here?

 

How big of a star can you really be in Charlotte? Perhaps he craved more notoriety? Nobody watches the Panthers. Even when we made the Super Bowl, we had to read article after article of the same drivel... "Carolina who?" I lived in Baltimore in 2003, and heard lots of people say they weren't going to watch the Super Bowl. Of course they missed a great game if they didn't.

Peppers will get more viewers per game, sell more jerseys, and generate more press in the larger market of Chicago. Also helps his HOF possibilities as well.

 

cause it's hard being a closet queer in a big/little city.

 

He was THE big star in Charlotte. In chicago he's just another star. I think he craved less notoriety.

I'd probably agree with this. plus I think it freaked him out having JR trying to force him into being "THE TEAM LEADER" compounded by his agent in his ear telling him he was under appreciated.

Or the closet queer thing.

 

I must remember it different. I thought in the beginning of last year, he was refreshed, saying things like that was the past, he's glad to be a Panther, and the future is wide open. And after the season, he and his agent were questioning why they hadn't heard shit, and were pretty much guessing he was going to be let go.

I think Peppers wanted to be here. Just me speculating, and I could certainly be wrong.