Jabrill Peppers sat on the Browns' bus Oct. 21 at Raymond James Stadium when a member of the team's communications staff found him and explained reporters had requested an interview.
Peppers didn't hide. Within minutes, he addressed media in the visitor's locker room and blamed himself entirely for the Browns losing, 26-23, to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers because he fumbled at the end of a 14-yard punt return in overtime and Chandler Catanzaro made the 59-yard, game-winning field goal six plays later. Peppers found no consolation in setting up a touchdown late in regulation with a 32-yard punt return, stressing his miscue in OT negated any good he had done.
The scene was reminiscent of last year, when Peppers, as a rookie first-round draft pick, routinely took responsibility for his poor performance at free safety during an 0-16 season. The coaches conceded Peppers should have been playing in the box as a strong safety instead of often lining up 20-25 yards away from the line of scrimmage as a free safety. However, they also concluded he was the best option on the roster at free safety, so they stuck him there.
Peppers, who turned 23 last month, repeatedly emphasized his tendency to overanalyze plays before and after the snap. The resulting hesitation resulted in disappointing production. He refused to point a finger at anyone but himself, though, and he never complained about being tasked with playing out of position.
"I learned at a very early age no one is going to feel sorry for you," he said. "Everyone's going through things. Everyone has circumstances they've got to make it through. It's how you overcome."
A missed tackle, a blown coverage, a fumble, a loss.
What passes for adversity in football pales in comparison with adversity in life, and Peppers knows the difference as well as anyone.
