No More Pepper

It came as a shock to many Pats fans to hear about long time coach Pepper Johnson leaving the team. Pepper announced that he was parting ways after being on Coach Belichick's staff since 2000.

He also had 26 years of continual association going back to his days on the Giants and then following Belichick to the Browns and Jets as a player. He won five Super Bowls with Belichick, three as a coach and two with the Giants.

The Pats released a statement that praised Johnson, but didn't really say why their relationship was ending. Was it the slap that Pepper took back in 2012 when Matt Patricia was named Defensive Coordinator? I thought Pepper might get the job, but he was just reassigned as a positional coach.

Where will he end up? Will it be in Houston with former Pats Coach Bill O'Brien and Romeo Crennel? Will he stay in the NFL, take a year off or head to the college ranks?

It seems like a marriage of 26 years just ended mutually and both parties are saying nice things about each other. I think Pepper felt slighted when he didn't get the coordinator's job.