Having determined months ago that Julius Peppers is a defensive end, and not a linebacker as some franchises felt before the draft, the Carolina Panthers staff faced the question of whether he would play the left or right side.

	Julius Peppers glances back at a teammate as he goes through his first mini-camp with the Carolina Panthers.

That matter seemingly was determined over the weekend, when in the team's first mini-camp, Peppers lined up on the left side.

While the choice of the strongside position is a surprise to some, particularly those critics who have vocally suggested the former North Carolina star will not be able to anchor against the run, neither Peppers nor John Fox, in his first year as the Panthers head coach, view it as a problem.

In fact, Peppers claimed after his first exposure to the NFL that he is looking forward to the challenge of learning the new position, and of silencing the skeptics.

"To me, it doesn't matter where I play, because I've got a lot to learn no matter where I line up," said Peppers, the second overall player selected last month. "Left or right, it's not a big deal. I am glad, though, they made the decision early. I have a couple of months now to get used to a different stance and everything."

During a college career in which he registered 30½ sacks and 42 quarterback pressures, Peppers characteristically rushed from the right side. Because playing the weak side might have meant having to contend with fewer double-team blocks, most coaches felt Peppers would be better served and more comfortable playing the familiar right end spot.

The Panthers, however, have other plans.

Certainly the conventional wisdom remains that a team's best pass-rusher is aligned to the open side of the offense, away from the tight end, and all the "chip" blocks that fullbacks use to stymie an upfield pass-rusher. But as the defensive coordinator for the New York Giants the past five seasons, Fox witnessed the havoc Michael Strahan visited upon opposition offenses while playing left end.

Twice in the past three years, the NFL's sack champion has been a left end, including the record-setting 22½ sacks Strahan posted in 2001. It seems there is plenty of justification for aligning a quick pass-rusher on the left side, where he can work against the offensive right tackle, who usually has slower feet than the left tackle.

	“	To me, it doesn't matter where I play, because I've got a lot to learn no matter where I line up. Left or right, it's not a big deal. I am glad, though, they made the decision early. I have a couple of months now to get used to a different stance and everything. ”
		— Julius Peppers, on his move to left defensive end

In his 1999 debut season, for instance, Tennessee Titans defensive end Jevon Kearse set a new rookie sack record playing the left side.

"There are some definite advantages," said Fox. "You get better quickness matchups on the left side. And on third-and-long, when you're rushing the passer, most offenses take the tight end out of the game anyway. So he's not on the field to double-team the end."

Another factor is the realization by Fox and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio that the incumbent right end, Mike Rucker, is coming off a solid 2001 season. A two-year pro, and the team's second-round choice in the 1999 draft, Rucker improved dramatically last year and his nine sacks were a team high.

And the offensive right tackles Peppers will face in the NFC South -- Victor Riley (New Orleans), Jerry Wunsch (Tampa Bay) and Todd Weiner (Atlanta) -- aren't players who have distinguished themselves yet as pass protectors.

The bigger question than if the first-round draft choice can bolster a pass rush that produced 32 sacks in '01 is whether Peppers, who was known to take some downs off while at North Carolina, can play the run well enough to keep teams from directing their ground attack straight at him. The Panthers aren't about to convince anyone he can yet, but the staff feels Peppers, who weighs about 285 pounds and has a long frame, will bulk up to about 300 pounds once he gets into a regular weightlifting program.

Because he played two years of varsity basketball for the Tar Heels, the weight room was not a priority for Peppers, but it will be now.

"He's more physical than people realize and his quickness, everyone knows about that, so we think he's going to be fine (at left end)," said defensive line coach Mike Trgovac. "It will be a learning experience playing from the side opposite what he's used to, but he's too good an athlete to allow it to make a difference. Plus you can see Julius wants to be good no matter where we put him."

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.