Panthers to keep rookie running back Jonathon Brooks on PUP list to begin 2024 season, per report

The Carolina Panthers invested a top pick in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft to bring aboard Texas running back Jonathon Brooks . However, they'll have to wait a bit longer to start seeing some returns on that investment. The club has elected to keep the rookie back on the PUP/NFI list as it narrows its roster down to 53 players on Tuesday, according to ESPN . That means Brooks is required to miss at least the first four games of the regular season.

Brooks is continuing to recover from a torn ACL he suffered last November while playing for the Longhorns. That recovery has, by all accounts, gone smoothly, but the back still needs some more time before making his NFL debut. Even with the injury, Brooks was looked at as a top prospect at the running back position this spring after rushing for 1,139 yards and 10 touchdowns in 11 games at the collegiate level last season before going down. While he may not have come off the board in the first round as he likely would've if healthy, Brooks was the first back off the board in the 2024 class.

The first month of the Panthers' upcoming schedule has them opening up the season in New Orleans against the Saints , the home opener against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 2, a trip to Las Vegas to face the Raiders in Week 3, and then a home game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4. All of these games Brooks will be required to miss before being first eligible to play in Week 5 when the Panthers will travel to Chicago to play the Bears .

In Brooks' absence, Carolina will likely lean on Chuba Hubbard . He took the reins of the backfield last season and totaled 1,135 yards from scrimmage and five total touchdowns in 17 games (12 starts). Veteran running back Miles Sanders , who had 586 scrimmage yards in 2023, is also on the roster and could factor into the backfield touches.