Peppers to Packers a Reality?

I'm still going with the school of thought that Teddy Thompson won't be shelling out a ton of money this offseason when it comes to free agency, and that would mean that Packers will not end up with Julius Peppers. While this would be a dream free agent signing because of the Packers new defensive coaches and the switch to the 3-4, I still just think it's too good to be true. Cheesehead TV, however, came across a little something that may cause us to rethink that logic. This is what renowned football writer Mike Lombardi had to say about the situation:

The Panthers cannot let him go, and they must franchise him to trade him if they don’t want to pay the going rate. They must protect their asset. They have a better chance to recruit and match a deal for (Jordan) Gross than they do for Peppers. Where can Peppers go? Well, he’ll have many options, with the first being the Packers.

The Packers? Are an option? Like, a serious one? Inner resting. Usually, when a fan base wants their team to sign a particular free agent, said signing never occurs. However, the Packers did reel in Reggie White on a miracle back in the day, and Julius Peppers could be the next generation's version of that. I'll put the Packers chances at signing Peppers at 30%, but I still don't see it happening.

Meanwhile, the Packers have a lot of other decisions to make in free agency, as in their own free agents. Colin Cole, Mike Montgomery (Facebook friend alert!), and Mark Tauscher are all unrestricted free agents, all whom I would like to see at least compete start for starting gigs with the Packers next season. Atari Bigby, Jarrett Bush, Ruvell Martin, Tory Humphrey, John Kuhn, Jason Hunter, and Bryan Ekern's favorite Shaun Bodiford are all restricted free agents. Tom Silverstein says this group of free agents is very manageable for the Packers to re-sign, if they are willing.

As for Peppers, hopefully God gives him the same speech that he gave Reggie White.