5 Panthers players who must stand out at mandatory minicamp in 2022

Derrick Brown – Carolina Panthers DT

The Carolina Panthers have gotten some impressive production from Derrick Brown over his first two seasons in the league. But much more is expected this time around as the defensive tackle looks to take another leap into the potential Pro Bowler category.

Brown has been a wrecking ball at times. However, consistency is an issue and the player is also double-teamed significantly by opposing protection schemes to further decrease his influence.

This is something that Brown is now used to and it’s a testament to his outstanding physical attributes that he is held in such esteem. But the truly elite players at the position can still make things happen with this attention and the Auburn product has plenty on his plate in pursuit of superstardom.

The Panthers invested heavily in Brown by taking him over Isaiah Simmons at No. 7 overall. This was the right call in a true position of need, but Year 3 is where players at the position tend to break out and Carolina will be expecting the same from their former first-round pick.

Brown has been working hard during the offseason and got his weight down, which will help. Much will also depend on how new signing Matt Ioannidis performs alongside him and whether the Panthers have enough coming off the edge after letting Haason Reddick leave for the Philadelphia Eagles in free agency.