Julius Peppers retired Friday, ending one of the most extraordinary careers in Carolina Panthers history.
Peppers will be remembered most for his freaky athletic talent — for 17 seasons, he was a marvel even among the marvels who populate every NFL roster. At 6-foot-7, 295 pounds, with the speed of a roadrunner and the strength of a grizzly, Peppers was both a future hall of famer and the sort of player opposing players would sidle up to during warmups, just to take a look up close.
Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly did exactly that when he was a rookie and Carolina was playing Chicago in 2012.