Peppers' pick perfect play
CHARLOTTE N.C. -- It took Bears defensive end Julius Peppers about 8½ minutes Sunday to remind the Carolina Panthers why they came away the biggest losers during the off-season free agency wars.
Peppers failed to get a sack in his return home to face his former team, but his first Bears interception provided the highlight reel play that energized the defense in its strongest effort of the season during a 23-6 victory.
“My impact on games goes far beyond what a stat sheet would say, Peppers said.
The stat sheet did show 4 Peppers tackles and his pass defended when he tipped Jimmy Clausen's short toss to wide receiver David Gettis high into the air before falling to his knees and catching it lunging forward.
The interception set up the Bears' offense at the Panthers 27 with 6:20 left in the first quarter and led to Robbie Gould's 28-yard field goal for a 17-3 lead.
“(Tackle Geoff) Schwartz was trying to cut me and he didn't get me down, Peppers said. “I was able to get my hand up.
The Panthers should have known better than to tempt fate based on Peppers' first eight seasons in their uniform.
“Quick screens to his side are not recommended, coach John Fox said. “Last year we played Arizona and he made a pretty nice play on one of those. He was actually cut to the ground, got back up and still tipped it. He's real athletic. We had him down on the ground. He made a great play. That is what great players do.
Peppers got credit for one quarterback hurry when he forced Clausen to throw away the ball, but he probably will get one or two more when film is reviewed. His biggest impact might have been on the other defensive end, Israel Idonije.
When offenses double- or triple-team Peppers, the player on the line who normally gets the opportunity to make a play due to 1-on-1 blocking is the other end. Idonije took advantage with a career-best 3 sacks for 19 yards in losses, plus a forced fumble and two quarterback hurries.
Afterward, Idonije only wanted to talk about Peppers.
“The guy's incredible, Idonije said. “That's just one guy taking over that's out on the field. Tip the ball, dive, the quarterback goes to knock it down and he (Peppers) catches it. The only thing left to do is for him to jump up and run to the end zone.
“He's going to make his presence felt in the game, no matter what. He's just going to do that.
Peppers gave it back to fans who had booed him earlier with a post-interception celebration.
“I loved it, I loved it, he said. “I'm over here now you see my (Bears) shirt. I'm not from the home team.
“That's what I expected. I think when I first came out I heard cheers but I didn't expect them to cheer for the whole game.
Early on, Peppers felt somewhat exhausted because of the emotion of playing in the state where he grew up and played both college and pro ball.
“I felt myself getting a little bit more winded earlier because of all the energy, he said. “I guess it was nervous energy at the beginning of the game. But after I played a couple snaps, I settled in.
Safety Chris Harris, a Panther for three seasons, also had a big game against his old team. He tied for team high with 7 tackles as the defense held Carolina to a season-low 147 net yards, the Panthers' lowest total since Dec. 15, 2002, in a 30-14 loss to Pittsburgh.
“After the first series, we kind of settled down, Harris said, alluding to Carolina's first drive, a nine-play march that included 8 runs.
Peppers tried to low-key his whole situation during the week, but not Sunday, when he called the game one of his top career moments.
“This is near the top because I have never been in this situation before, he said. “It's not like I went off to college and then came back and played against UNC or the home team. It's not like I got drafted by another team and was able to play them before. This was a first-time experience and it was special.
“It felt better to get the win.