Matthew Geagan is a sports producer for CBS Boston. He has been part of the WBZ sports team for nearly 20 years. He moved over to the web in 2012 and has covered all the highs (and a few lows) in Boston sports.

Jabrill Peppers finds himself in an interesting spot in Week 3 of the NFL season. The veteran safety was cut by the New England Patriots three weeks ago, and will get to square off against his former team Sunday when the Pittsburgh Steelers invade Gillette Stadium.

Peppers' release was a shocker, and he spent a week as a free agent before he signed with the Steelers on Sept. 9. He didn't play any defensive snaps for his new team in last week's 31-17 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, but was on the field for seven special teams plays.

Peppers anticipates making his defensive debut for Pittsburgh this weekend in Foxboro, and Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin sounded ready to let Peppers loose on Sunday. The Steelers surrendered an average of 245 passing yards in the first two weeks, which is eighth-worst in the NFL.

Given his relationship with the Patriots ended less than a month ago, Peppers was ask Thursday if he's feeling a little something extra for Sunday's game.

"Maybe a little bit, yeah. If I'm being honest," Peppers told KDKA in Pittsburgh.

Though Peppers had established himself as one of the defensive leaders over his three seasons with the Patriots, he did so under head coaches Bill Belichick and Jerod Mayo. New head coach Mike Vrabel and his defensive staff in New England wanted to reshape the Patriots' defense, and didn't think Peppers was a good fit for its new scheme.

Peppers pushed back at that notion on social media following his release.

Now the hard-hitting safety will look to bring a little extra spice into Sunday's Week 3 matchup, as he potentially joins the Steelers defense in trying to keep Drake Maye and the Patriots off the scoreboard.

While he hopes to provide a little extra heat on the New England offense on Sunday, Peppers holds no ill will against his former team.

"I loved it. I enjoyed myself. Great city, great fans," Peppers said of his time in New England. "They coach you hard and expect you to produce. But I'm here now and loving where I'm at. I'm excited for this Sunday."

He's only been with the Steelers for a few weeks, but Peppers has enjoyed soaking in all the history of another all-time franchise in the NFL.

"I love it. Playing for Tomlin and playing in this Steelers defense is not something I take for granted," he said. "All the great players that played here, their mindsets and how they played the game, how seriously they took their job week in and week out. I love playing for those types of organizations you can go back 30-40 years and cut the tape on and see guys getting after it. It's definitely not something I take for granted."

Jabrill Peppers admits to having a little extra spice for a revenge game vs. Patriots