Jabrill Peppers‘ torn ACL will keep him sidelined for the rest of the 2021 campaign, and considering his expiring contract, there’s a chance his stint with the Giants has effectively come to an end. However, head coach Joe Judge kept the door open when speaking with reporters on Wednesday.
“Look, this guy is in a contract year, it’s something I’ve talked to him about directly,” Judge said (h/t to Josh Alper of ProFootballTalk.com). “He’s a guy that I value a lot in this program. I’d love to have this guy going forward, I’ve told him that directly. He’s been a very good leader for us. You can talk about him being local, that the Giants mean something to him. I think that’s very important. He’s a guy that loves football, he loves this organization, he loves this area. Those are things we talk about building as cornerstones and pillars of this program and he’s a very important part of our program.”
The safety started five of his six games this season, compiling 29 tackles and one sack. Considering Peppers’ contract status, his reduced playing time, and continued trade rumblings, there was a chance the veteran would be traded prior to his injury. The ACL injury certainly changed things, and Peppers could pursue a comeback with his current team.
More notes out of the NFC East…
- With the Giants sitting at 2-5, it wouldn’t be a surprise if several Giants veterans end up hitting the trade block. Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv explored which players could be on the move, with tight end Evan Engram, cornerback James Bradberry, guard Will Hernandez, tight end Kyle Rudolph, and offensive tackle Nate Solder earning spots on the list. Vacchiano even goes as far as to list running back Saquon Barkley as a potential trade candidate, but he can’t envision the Giants receiving a haul that would convince them to bail on the former second-overall pick.
- Randy Gregory has dealt with his fair share of suspensions, but the former Cowboys second-round pick followed an impressive 2020 campaign with an even better start to the 2021 season. In five games (four starts), Gregory has collected four sacks. The 28-year-old will hit free agency following the 2021 season, but David Moore, Calvin Watkins, and Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News all believe that the defensive end will be back next season. Moore notes that the team wouldn’t have held on to Gregory for all these years if they didn’t plan on a long-term pact, while Watkins cautions that the franchise tag could prove to be a risky move considering Gregory’s limited track record.
- There was once some hope that Ryan Fitzpatrick would be back by now, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport writes that Washington Football Team will have to wait a bit longer. The 38-year-old is still weeks away from returning, with Week 10 being the earliest possible return for the starting quarterback. Fitzpatrick suffered a hip subluxation back in September, forcing Taylor Heinicke into the lineup.
I know everyone thinks the world of Riverboat Ron, but when you decide Fitz is your #1 and his #2 played like 5 games, its just not good football strategy. Oh, and that top D under his watch is a bottom feeder as well.
In defense of Ron, I think the scandal surrounding Snyder and the organization has been a major distraction that has hindered him. He was hands down the best coaching candidate available when he was hired and could out coach Jay Gruden in his sleep, I still believe he can get this team turned around and headed in the right direction.
He was the only person interviewed for the job. He had 1 SB season 5(?) years ago and that’s about it. He has a 3-7 win/loss season record. He’s not very good. But he’s comfortable taking the media arrows so Dan can hide out.
How many head coaches even have a superbowl appearance in the last 8 years? (considering bill has been there a few times its not very many) …. how many coaches have even a 100 games as head coach? How many of those coaches with 100 games plus have a winning record? Plus he did make the playoffs for not being a very good coach (yes weak division but still made it in his first year with the team)
To say he is not a very good coach kind of spits in the face of any kind of history in the sport. Are you saying Bellicheck is a bad coach because of last season and this season so far? Im not saying Ron is as good as Bill but they basically the same record with Ron making the playoffs but not bill and funnily enough bill took rons qb. Even their conferences are similar with one team usually running away with the division each season.
While you may not like him he got the job done. With washington he has not had a qb worth a damn, Fitz probably being the best of the bunch and its pretty hard to run a team with crap qb no matter how good or bad the d is. Look at the jets, the one year they had a decent qb in brett farve even at his age they made the playoffs.
So can you tell me how Ron is not a good coach? Could he get more up with the times and tech? Yes but if there is a coach out there that can turn a team around i think he can and hopefully with a better qb next year will turn it around.
Yeah, and Heinicke in actuality is not that bad a backup. If you have a backup that is a starting caliber quarterback, you won’t have him around for long. Your backup really shouldn’t have to start half the season, especially with limited offensive weapons.
Washington ended up doing worse than expected this season, but in all honesty there really was not an enormously expectation for them this year anyway. We maybe could have expected a divisional title, but I don’t think we had them going deep in the playoffs. Fitz being healthy would have really improved their chances, but the offense had questions all around going in to this year at many positions. Now, the defense has questions.
So I wouldn’t put this all on Ron Rivera. He is one of the league’s best at creating a winning locker room culture, which is EXACTLY what Washington needed. It’s like Stefanski with Cleveland-reversing a directionless team identity. That’s what Washington needs. Maybe now, with Bruce Allen gone and Snyder seemingly realizing the importance of having good team culture, but it will be really hard to reverse a long term negative atmosphere that will push a team to more wins on the field.
In the meantime though, Rivera could use a couple of more X and O oriented assistants to get better tactical production from the team.
When did I say Bill was a bad coach? I go by records. Kyle Shanahan, we’re always told, is an offensive genius. But 4 out of 5 losing seasons tells a different story.
Ron can hang his hat on 2013, 2015 & 2017 seasons. All well above 500. But he started coaching 10 years ago, 2011. He’s not very good.
That’s too bad about Peppers. I was hoping for a draft pick for him.