A confident and explosive Jabrill Peppers is bringing the thump on Patriots’ secondary, special teams

Jabrill Peppers’ physical profile can often be both a blessing and a curse out of the gridiron.

Given both his heft (213 pounds) and propensity to bowl over targets out on the field, the New Jersey native developed into a five-star recruit at the linebacker position, eventually anchoring the heart of Michigan’s defense during his three seasons at Ann Arbor. 

But given his smaller stature (5-foot-11), Peppers was going to have to forgo dedicated reps at linebacker at the next level, with a role in the secondary standing as the logical route for him to take at the pro game.

Peppers’ instincts, physicality and natural speed made his switch to safety a given after getting drafted back in 2017. But even with all of that natural talent, needing to augment one’s role out on the field still stands as a daunting endeavor for any athlete to overcome. 

As if a regularly shifting role wasn’t already enough of a matter to tackle, Peppers was staring at an uphill climb as soon as he signed a one-year deal with the Patriots back in April, with the 27-year-old still on the mend after suffering a torn ACL last October with the Giants. 

By the time he was finally cleared to practice later on training camp, it was evident that Peppers was going to need to shake off some rust — and make some major strides in order to rise up the depth chart in New England’s secondary.

But even with that slow start as Peppers tried to find his footing once again, New England remained committed to their new signing, hopeful that his versatility and thump would pay dividends on a defensive unit in desperate need of both traits. 

"Have you seen the guy? The guy looks like the Incredible Hulk," Matthew Slater said of Peppers on Monday. "It's muscles on top of muscles. Physicality's an understatement when you talk about his game. He certainly embraces it and the way he's able to really roll his hips on contact in short area spaces, whether that's defensively or in the kicking game, it's super impressive. So, he brings a level of physicality that few guys his size can bring.”

And in a game against the Jets where the Patriots desperately needed to right the ship, Peppers left his fingerprints all over the tape — wreaking havoc both on defense and special teams to help bolster a shorthanded New England defensive unit.

"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," Bill Belichick said of Peppers. "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."

In a meeting at MetLife Stadium in which the Patriots were already shorthanded defensively without Christian Barmore and Kyle Dugger, Peppers was pressed into heavy reps, with New England hoping that the former Wolverine could serve as an effective contingency plan, especially when it came to countering New York’s run game. 

And sure enough, Peppers made the most of his opportunity. Finishing with eight total tackles — including a tackle for loss — Peppers was a far cry from the player we saw during training camp: decisive, explosive and punishing with his hits.

“He’s kept building,” Patriots safeties coach Brian Belichick said of Peppers. “As he gets more comfortable in the defense, he’s playing faster and it’s great. He’s a great learner and learned it and worked hard on it coming in as a new vet. It’s been good. … We had Dugg out for the game and other guys can keep rolling through. It doesn’t limit us.”

Peppers served admirably in place of Dugger, but his most thunderous contribution might have been on special teams. 

It shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise that the Patriots’ most promising punt return of the season, a 32-yard scramble by Marcus Jones, was first orchestrated by a bone-crunching collision facilitated by Peppers. 

As Jones waited in anticipation for the punt to fall, the Jets were already mounting pressure, with Justin Hardee soaring down the sideline, smelling blood in the water with the Patriots' corner in his sight.

But before he could be the first man in on Jones, Hardee was trucked over by Peppers, who dug into the turf and launched the Jets gunner skyward — eliciting a frenzied response from the Patriots sideline. 

As Hardee eventually fell out of orbit, Jones was off, running all the way to the Jets’ 27-yard line and eventually starting a drive that ended up with another field goal from Nick Folk. 

"That was maybe the best block we've had in the return game all year on probably one of the best, if not the best, gunner in the league right now in Justin Hardee," Slater said. "Pep stepped up and to have that mindset to meet the challenge, it was huge. He's been so selfless since he's been here. He's just doing whatever he's been asked to do; doing it with a smile; coming out energetic; trying to stay positive. That was a huge, huge block. It really fired up the whole team, the whole sideline. Really gave us a shot of juice."

With Dugger back at practice on Wednesday, the Patriots could be in a favorable position if both hard-hitting safeties are available. If Peppers can build off of Sunday’s performance, he can be a potential Swiss Army Knife for this defense — capable of stuffing the run game and potentially even earning some looks as a sub-linebacker if needed. 

But regardless of where he exactly falls into New England’s defensive scheme as more healthy bodies return, one thing remains clear. Wherever Peppers lines up on the field, there’s a good chance that the opposition is going to be dealt a couple of welts. 

"I like to think I'm a physical player," Peppers said. "I think that's been my background for a while, but I just wanted to play within myself. To be aggressive but to play within the scheme. Just trying to make the plays that came to me."

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