Belichick Excited About Safety Peppers’ Growth
David Dermer-USA TODAY Sports
It’s not often you see Bill Belichick get excited when it comes to talking about his own players, but he certainly did on Tuesday when asked about safety, Jabrill Peppers.
Belichick was asked if he’s seen any “growth” from the veteran safety and the Patriots head coach definitely appears pleased with how far Peppers has come over the last year.
“Yeah. Oh my god, yeah,” said Belichick. “He’s a much different player now than he was last year at this time or even in training camp.”
“A full year after the injury, a lot of confidence in the communication, the system, his assignments. He’s playing fast, aggressive, helping out his teammates. Last year he was trying to learn things, now he’s helping out his teammates, anticipating, making calls or adjustments that maybe help him or possibly help his teammate be in a better position to defend a certain play or type of play.”
“Yeah, he’s been great. He’s way ahead of where he was last year.”
Peppers appeared in all 17 games in 2022, but played in over 50% of the defensive snaps just three times over that span (Week 3 – 63%, Week 8 – 68%, and Week 16 – 63%).
However, it looks like that may change this season, as it looks like he may be poised for big things in his second year here in New England.
Portions of the above appeared in this morning’s Patriots notebook, which is a daily column that features a variety of news and notes.
Posted Under: Patriots News
Tags: Bill Belichick Jabrill Peppers
