Derrick Brown's follow-up to his first Pro Bowl season has hit a snag.
The Panthers defensive tackle is potentially out for the rest of the 2024 campaign after suffering a meniscus injury in Carolina's blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported. Brown is ecptected to need surgery, which will determine the exact timeline for return, per Pelissero.
Panthers head coach Dave Canales told reporters on Monday Brown going to get a second opinion. Calnales added that the injury "popped up on us", and he could not speculate on when the injury occured during Sunday's game.
Brown's situation might sound familiar to Vikings fans, who were disappointed to learn their rookie quarterback, J.J. McCarthy, would miss the 2024 season due to a meniscus injury that ultimately required a repair, ending his first campaign after one preseason contest. Like McCarthy, Brown will have to undergo surgery before knowing whether he'll be able to return in 2024.
After a quiet first few seasons, Brown finally broke through in 2023, recording 103 tackles (seven for loss), two sacks and proving to be a stud in advanced metrics, leading all defensive tackles in run stops with 79, per Next Gen Stats. With a notable improvement in run defense and a pass-rushing ability that saw him log 37 QB pressures in 2024, Brown made an overdue appearance on the greater NFL radar by securing his first Pro Bowl nod of his career.
The 2024 campaign was supposed to be the season in which the rest of the league would see Carolina's first-round investment (Brown was the seventh-overall pick of the 2020 draft) pay off. Instead, he's headed toward an uncertain few days, which could either mean Brown is out for a handful of weeks, or done for the season.
"Definitely a huge loss," Canales said. "He’s one of our best players. That’s big shoes to fill."
There is good news for Brown: He signed a four-year, $96 million extension with the Panthers in April, receiving the financial reward he'd earned after shining amid a difficult year for Carolina. We'll soon learn whether he'll be able to resume his pursuits of excellence in 2024.