Peppers & Cowboys... Good Match?

[Hostile]

Julius Peppers good match for the Dallas Cowboys?

March 17, 5:04 PM Julius Peppers continues to push the Carolina Panthers to trade him, and he's put two teams on his radar: The Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots.

ESPN has a report about Pepper's interest in the two teams.

The Cowboys priority is signing sack leaderDeMarcus Ware. The Cowboys still have Greg Ellis and Anthony Spencer. Do they really need Julius Peppers, who is asking to be released from a team that had the second seed in the NFC playoffs this year, and one of the better running attacks in football?

The Cowboys would be better off securing depth for the offensive line and secondary and hoping for a gem in the late rounds of the 2009 draft with any other picks.

The Cowboys don't really need Julius Peppers. Plus, it is unlikely that the team will have enough money and/or picks to trade for him. Do the Panthers want an aging Greg Ellis or Anthony Spencer, who has shown potential, but not much? I don't think so. Who else could we give the Panthers? We don't have any first-round picks.

Point is, Peppers is not a player the Cowboys need. Chemistry is.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

*Shrugs* I don't know if he's a good match, certainly not a high priority need, but if there was a shot to give them Ellis and a couple of picks, depending on what the picks were, I wouldn't be opposed to it.

I don't see this kind of thing happening though. If he gets traded, and i believe he will, they'll wind up dealing him to New England.

 

[TheSkaven]

If the past few seasons have proved anything, big names and paper teams do not win championships. Heck, we should have learned that from the Commanders.

Having said that, it really depends upon what it would take to get him. If Ellis and a 4th will do, then sure. But it won't. The asking price is going to start at a 2nd round pick and go up from there.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

I think the price, without players involves, is going to start at a 1st and go from there. I'm thinking something more like a Jared Allen deal will be necassary in order to get him, rather than a 2nd.

Which is why I really don't think Dallas has any real shot at getting him.

 

[burmafrd]

Why not? We could use Ellis and maybe a couple of other fringe guys plus a pick or two.
Sure would make things interesting.

 

[Zaxor]

I agree not a good match

 

[Apollo Creed]

Unless he can play DT, ILB, CB, WR, T, or safety - we don't need him right now.

 

[theebs]

Guys like peppers and cutler are looking for a payday.

We dont have the firepower in the draft to go get him and pay him, and who is to say he wont be lousy like 07 after he gets paid.

New england has the need and the firepower to go get him. Seems like a perfect fit.

 

[TNCowboy]

Peppers is a fantastic talent, but I don't think he'll fit the 34 so well.

He's not the fluid athlete that Demarcus Ware is. To me, he's the prototype 43 DE. Former basketball player or not, he looks to me like he's better with his hand on the ground.

Teams will be salivating trying to isolate him one on one with somebody like Brian Westbrook.

All that aside, he's too expensive.

 

[ArmyCowboy]

Giving away high draft picks + a huge contract for a guy who has never played the position that he would play here is not a smart move.

No thanks

 

[RoadRunner]

I'd rather improve the offensive line and secondary.

 

[Big D]

I'd rather improve the offensive line and secondary.

 

[YosemiteSam]

Julius Peppers good match for the Dallas Cowboys?

March 17, 5:04 PM Julius Peppers continues to push the Carolina Panthers to trade him, and he's put two teams on his radar: The Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots.

ESPN has a report about Pepper's interest in the two teams.

The Cowboys priority is signing sack leaderDeMarcus Ware. The Cowboys still have Greg Ellis and Anthony Spencer. Do they really need Julius Peppers, who is asking to be released from a team that had the second seed in the NFC playoffs this year, and one of the better running attacks in football?

The Cowboys would be better off securing depth for the offensive line and secondary and hoping for a gem in the late rounds of the 2009 draft with any other picks.

The Cowboys don't really need Julius Peppers. Plus, it is unlikely that the team will have enough money and/or picks to trade for him. Do the Panthers want an aging Greg Ellis or Anthony Spencer, who has shown potential, but not much? I don't think so. Who else could we give the Panthers? We don't have any first-round picks.

Point is, Peppers is not a player the Cowboys need. Chemistry is.

I disagree about Spencer. I believe he has shown quite a bit. His problem is actually being on the field and work ethic. Part of that is Ellis playing time. The other part is immaturity.

I wouldn't trade Spencer for Peppers due to youth and potential, but I would send Ellis and / or a draft pick for him ONLY if he is willing to accept a bargin contract. If he wants big money, let him go elsewhere.

 

[wileedog]

Peppers is a fantastic talent, but I don't think he'll fit the 34 so well.

He's not the fluid athlete that Demarcus Ware is. To me, he's the prototype 43 DE. Former basketball player or not, he looks to me like he's better with his hand on the ground.

Teams will be salivating trying to isolate him one on one with somebody like Brian Westbrook.

All that aside, he's too expensive.

Well, I will say that if the Pats are chasing him then that means Bellichick doesn't have much concern about him playing the position, which you have to give some consideration to.

That said, agree with everyone else its an unnecessary and very expensive luxury, and we have bigger needs.

 

[AsthmaField]

I don't see Pepp as a need here. Anthony Spencer, IMO, is going to have somewhat of a breakout year in '09. He's got everything we need as a starter at SOLB. I want to see what he can do healthy and with plenty of snaps.

 

[big dog cowboy]

I'm hoping we just pass. When I look at the weaknesses on this team I just don't see how he can improve any of them.

 

[burmafrd]

Trade Ellis. Get peppers. We would then rush inside the Rat and Spencer, and from the Outside Ware and Peppers. And James did pretty well also last year. That would be FIVE legitimate rushers (though I guess Spencer still really has to prove himself capeable of getting 6-8 sacks).

 

[THUMPER]

A couple of questions/points on this:

1. Could we even swing it?

Peppers' cap hit is too much for us to absorb at this time IMO. Maybe if we traded Ellis and Carpenter for him then we might clear enough space to fit him in and then restructure his deal so that it fits better. Even with the players they would still want to get at least one high draft pick which we can't afford to give up. Ellis might be attractive because he is a proven player and is from NC. Carp might be a good fit with them because of their scheme and they need help at LB.

The answer is - Yes, we could probably swing it but it would be very costly and it is not a need.

2. Would he be a good fit here and in our 3-4?
Aside from the chemistry issues and WHY he wants out of Carolina in the first place, I don't think he would be a good fit in our 3-4, which is slightly different from the Parcells/Belichick brand of 3-4. He is primarily a 4-3 DE but he says that he would like to play the 3-4 OLB position and believes he can do it. He is pretty quick but he has had some injury issues the last couple of years and has not been as productive. I don't believe he would be able to consistently cover a RB out of the backfield and would be a liability on passing downs unless he is rushing the QB.

The answer is - No, I don't believe he would be a good fit here although in terms of attitude, it might be a wash between him and Ellis so I wouldn't discount the deal solely on that.

3. Do we need him?
With Spencer on board we really don't NEED another pass rusher at OLB. Peppers is a bit small to play DE in the 3-4, particularly on running downs, but he could probably do it. The problem is, he wants to prolong his career by moving to OLB in a 3-4, not take more of a beating playing DE in it, so I don't see him being willing to be used that way anyway.

Ellis can be a whiner at times but he is still a pretty productive player for us and gives us depth at the position. So trading for Peppers would be a luxury move for us that we really can't afford at this time.

The answer is - No, he is not a NEED at this time.

4. Is getting a pass rusher a priority this year?
As I stated above, with Ellis and Spencer playing opposite Ware we are not lacking in the pass rushing OLB department so this would merely be looking for an upgrade to Ellis for the most part.

IMO, Our biggest priority this offseason should be getting quality depth for the O-Line, a backup NT, Safety, Backup QB, WR, depth at CB, and depth at ILB. OLB is a strong suit at this point and we have too many other areas of NEED to address in the draft and FA to worry about making an upgrade at that spot that would likely reduce our ability to upgrade at others.

The answer is - No, OLB is NOT a priority this offseason.

I like Peppers a lot but I don't really see a need to bring him here.

 

[Stash]

I'd have to say that after a brief period of 'what if' contemplating, I don't think this move makes sense for the Cowboys.

And I honestly don't think they're pursuing it either.

It would have been tough enough if Peppers was a free agent and you only had his bloated contract to worry about.

But now that he's been tagged and the proce is even greater.

Far too high for this fan's tastes for a player I still have questions about.

I'd give Anthony Spencer the opportunity to become they player you hoped he would be when you drafted him.

If he can't, start looking for a viable replacement next season.

I'm wondering if the Panthers aren't less than thrilled to have Peppers counting $16 million against their cap.

 

[LittleBoyBlue]

If the past few seasons have proved anything, big names and paper teams do not win championships. Heck, we should have learned that from the Commanders.

Having said that, it really depends upon what it would take to get him. If Ellis and a 4th will do, then sure. But it won't. The asking price is going to start at a 2nd round pick and go up from there.

Well, yes thats true. But these past seasons failure were not due to having big name players.


If I were Peppers, my heart would say Dallas but my head would say Pats. The coaching gives their team the edge.

Its going to take mistake free football, good execution and good coaching. We are not consistent in any of those three.