The Patriots are retaining another one of their own players according to ESPN's Adam Schefter who reported on Tuesday night that the team will sign strong safety Jabrill Peppers to a two-year deal. After two years with the Browns and three with the Giants, Peppers signed a one-year deal for 2022 with New England and was active for all 17 games with five starts in a four-down role.
Coming off an injury-shortened 2021 with the Giants after an ACL tear, Peppers was slowly eased into Patriots training camp in the summer of 2022. The versatile safety/linebacker was a clear fit for the defense but with a logjam at the position starting with Kyle Dugger and Adrian Phillips, the question was how would Peppers get on the field and contribute.
He showed up as a four-team special teamer and subpackage safety early in the season and saw his role spike at various points throughout the year, recovering a fumble against the Ravens while playing a majority of the defensive snaps and logging a season-high eight total tackles in a Week 17 win over Miami.
"I thought Jabrill had several big plays for us and physical plays, so yeah, good to see that production out there, have him out there. He helped us in the kicking game and certainly helped us out defensively against the run and the pass and on the pass rush. Just good to have him on the field," said Bill Belichick following the Patriots Week 8 win over the Jets, sealed with an onside kick recovery by Peppers.
While Peppers appears more in the safety hybrid mold he could also factor in as the team looks to replace primary free safety Devin McCourty on the field. Peppers spent his rookie year with the Browns as a full-time free safety after they selected him in the 2017 first round, 25th overall.
His anticipation and aggressiveness are tailormade for the box, but there's more to his game that is sure to be useful for New England's gameplan defense.
