The Carolina Panthers’ season-opening loss took a turn for the worse on Monday.
A league source confirmed to The Charlotte Observer that Derrick Brown , the team’s only Pro Bowler and record-breaking defensive lineman a year ago, suffered a potentially season-ending knee injury in Sunday’s 47-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints . It’s a meniscus injury and will require surgery.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network had the news first.
Monday afternoon, head coach Dave Canales confirmed the injury and said that Brown is seeking a second opinion.
“They’re getting a second opinion, that’s really all I can give you right now,” Canales said. The coach later added, “The one thing I can say is, you look at this game, and regardless of the time or the score, it’s a PAT or a field goal, and Derrick is rushing with full effort. That’s the spirit of what we want to be about.”
Brown played 68 snaps in total on Sunday — 60 on defense (91%) and eight on special teams (27%). He finished with three tackles in the Panthers’ season-opening loss.
It’s unclear when exactly he sustained the injury on Sunday, Canales said. It’s also unclear how long Brown will be out. According to Web MD, it typically takes four to eight weeks to recover fully following successful surgery of a torn meniscus.
Brown woke up a bit sore Monday morning and got an MRI immediately. When asked Monday, Canales didn’t know when the second opinion was scheduled. All he knew was that “it’s a meniscus injury, and the severity of it is what they’re checking on.”
What Derrick Brown’s absence means to Panthers
The news marks an incalculable blow for the Panthers’ defense, which saw Brown as a centerpiece in 2024 and beyond.
The 6-foot-5, 320-pound defensive lineman earned a four-year, $96 million contract extension in April , one that validated a 2023 season in which he notched 103 tackles, two sacks and one interception. Defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said before the 2024 season that Brown — whose 103 tackles broke the record for most tackles as a DL since the stat started being recorded — was so talented that he still had room to add to his game in 2024 : “I think this guy can get eight-to-10 sacks this year.”
Those big plans will be put on hold, though, after Monday’s news. The 26-year-old’s absence leaves another hole for Evero and the defense to fill after it was slashed on Sunday — allowing the Derek Carr-led Saints to throw for 199 yards and three touchdowns and run for 180 yards and two touchdowns.
Starting veteran safety Xavier Woods called the news “devastating.”
“It’s part of the game, but I know definitely, just for him, I know he’s devastated about it,” Woods said. “But he’s already talked about just attacking whatever it is that he has to go through. But he’s definitely devastated. He wants to be with the team, wants to be part of this team, wants to take that next step as a player for himself.”
Woods added that he’s a “tremendous loss to this team.”
“What he does, you can’t replace it,” Woods said. “But it takes 11 of us to go out there, you know what I mean? Derrick Brown is one of the best DTs in the game. But the next man, he’s gotta come out and do the best that he can — to not replace him, but to be himself and be the best player he can be for the team.”
The next men up on the defensive line are Nick Thurman and Jayden Peevy and LaBryan Ray, the latter of whom was listed as inactive in the team’s season opener . The Panthers can also elevate defensive tackle T.J. Smith from the practice squad.
The team could look to make a signing to help recoup the loss that Brown’s absence presents. The Panthers have the No. 1 spot in the waiver wire through at least Week 3.
Veteran tight end Jordan Matthews, who has come back from a meniscus injury in his own career, said that Brown’s injury is the kind of news that reverberates across the team and the NFL.
“I think what’s understood doesn’t even gotta be said,” Matthews said Monday. “There are certain names, when they come across the ticker for your own team, they kind of hit you in the gut a little bit. And I think even for other teams, it’s like, ‘Oh.’ There are just certain names, and Derrick Brown is one of those names.
“So we gotta let everything play out. It’s still early. And I’ve dealt with (a meniscus injury) before when I had my ACL (tear) , so there are a lot of different variables. ... I think we’ll just be praying for Derrick. He puts so much into it. I mean, golly, he’s one of our hardest workers. He earns every cent every day. So I just think the main thing is we’ll be praying for him, and then we’ll see what happens.”
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