NFL Draft: Jabrill Peppers to attend NFL Combine as a Linebacker

The NFL Combine participants for the 2017 Draft has been released and Jabrill Peppers will do drills with the Linebackers group.

When Jabrill Peppers was recruited to Michigan in 2013, it was as a cornerback. It didn’t take long after he arrived on campus before he was moved to safety. At 6’0″, 205 pounds, the move looked smart, as he showed promise as a freshman starter at nickel safety. After three games he was injured and sat out the remainder of the season.

His second season at Michigan he played multiple positions in the secondary and found success at strong safety. He was also utilized on offense (running back and receiver) and special teams. Peppers was often used as a “hang defender”, dropping down to the same level as the linebackers. The Michigan coaches did this in an effort to get him closer to the ball.

This past season, Michigan hired a new defensive coordinator, Don Brown. Brown is known for creating a defensive scheme that priorities speed from his outside linebackers. Peppers was asked to convert from safety to a hybrid (Viper) linebacker position. This would bring him even closer to the line of scrimmage, allowing him track and attack the ball.

Transition to the NFL

Because of his size and athletic ability, it would be natural for Peppers to return the strong safety position in the NFL. Most evaluators predict that this change would be necessary, including NFL.com draft expert Lance Zierlein, who profiles him here. While Lance does acknowledge Peppers will still be used in a Hybrid role, it will be one that is more clearly defined than what he had at Michigan.

In a twist that not many people anticipated, when this years NFL Combine list was released, Peppers was listed in the linebackers group. For further clarification on Peppers combine invite, I discussed this situation with Lance Zierlein on Twitter, here’s some of the exchange:

So this makes sense if specific teams want to use him in a hybrid linebacker position, like Deone Bucannon in Arizona, but grouping him with the linebackers limits the types of drills he will participate in.

As Lance stated above, there are coverage drills that the linebackers participate in during the on-field workouts, but there are far less of them than the defensive backs complete. With fewer opportunities he will have to nail the linebacker coverage drills, like the “Pass Drop and Hip Rotation Drill”. If he can demonstrate fluidity in his transitions he will still have a chance to show scouts his coverage skills.

Next: 14 Michigan Wolverines Invited to the Combine

Peppers is one of the more interesting draft stories to watch this season. Some teams will like him as a safety and will have a lower grade on him. Others will like him as a linebacker and may value him higher. If he lands on a team with a creative defensive coordinator, he’ll have a chance to see the field early and often in the NFL.