ATLANTA — Julius Peppers, who reached the Pro Bowl is three out of four seasons with the Bears and was a bona fide star for most of his 17 years in the NFL, is retiring.
“Only time can reveal what’s next, but my time here is up. … ” he said in a Twitter video put out by the Panthers, the team with whom he started and ended his career. “It’s not goodbye. It’s kinda like, ‘I’ll see you later.'”
Peppers is destined for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, though he’d enter as a Panther.
The 39-year-old Peppers starred at North Carolina — and even played basketball — before the Panthers selected him second in the 2002 draft. He spent the first eight years of his career there, reaching four Pro Bowls. In March 2010, the Bears gave him a six-year deal worth $42 million guaranteed and $91.5 million overall, with bonuses that would have brought the total even higher.
In four seasons with the Bears, Peppers totaled 37 1/2 sacks and three Pro Bowl appearances. The Bears let him leave after going 8-8 in 2013, and he spent the next three seasons as an outside linebacker for the Packers. He returned home to the Panthers in 2017, totaling 11 sacks. In his final season, he had five.
The oldest defensive player in the NFL, Peppers finished his career with 159 1/2 sacks, fourth-most in NFL history. He had 21 fumble recoveries and 11 interceptions.
He played in 176-straight games to end his career — his last missed game was in 2007.
“Once a Panther, always a Panther,” he said.
