the Panthers offense one more chance to win the game, but the Panthers offense was unable to score, causing the Panthers to lose by a score of 31–26. 2018 season On March 14, 2018, Peppers signed a one-year contract extension with the Panthers. In week 6 against the Washington Redskins, Peppers recorded a sack and a forced fumble which gave him 50 forced fumbles for his career. Peppers is only the second player in NFL history to record at least 50 forced fumbles, the first being Robert Mathis. The Panthers would lose the game though 17-23. In week 7 against the Eagles, Peppers recorded a sack and forced fumble on fourth down late in the fourth quarter to seal the victory for the Panthers by a score of 21-17. In week 17 against the New Orleans Saints, in what would be his last NFL game, Peppers would have yet another dominant performance, one of many in his Hall of Fame worthy career. Peppers recorded 4 solo tackles, 1 sack, 2 other tackles for loss, and 1 pass defensed as he looked to be all over the field in helping to defeat the Saints by a score of 33-14. Peppers finished the season with 14 solo tackles, 8 assisted tackles, 5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 6 passes defensed, and 3 stuffs. After a 17-year career in the NFL, Peppers announced his retirement on February 1, 2019. Peppers finished his legendary NFL career with 716 total tackles and 159.5 sacks (fourth most all-time - trailing only Bruce Smith (200), Reggie White (198) and Kevin Greene (160). He sacked 77 different quarterbacks, tied with Hall of Famer Reggie White for the most since sacks became official in 1982. Peppers recorded at least one sack against 30 of the NFL’s 32 franchises. The exceptions were the Bengals (three games against) and the Colts (four games against). He also had 51 forced fumbles (second most all-time) 21 fumble recoveries, 11 interceptions, 82 passes defensed, 6 defensive touchdowns scored (four interceptions returned, and two fumble recoveries) 60 stuffs, and 13 blocked kicks (second most all-time). He played in 266 of a possible 272 games in his career - the sixth most games played by a defensive player in NFL history. Post-playing career On May 8, 2019, Peppers was hired as a special assistant of business operations with the Carolina Panthers. NFL career statistics