There’s a quiet dominance that lives at the center of the Carolina Panthers' defense — and it wears No. 95.
Derrick Brown doesn’t get the headlines of the game’s flashier edge rushers or highlight-generating corners. But make no mistake, the interior lineman is one of the most impactful defenders in football.
In fact, it’s fair to argue he’s the most underrated defensive player in the entire NFL.
Brown’s game doesn’t rely on splash plays or gaudy sack totals. His greatness lives in the margins — in the early-down trench battles that decide drives before the ball ever hits the perimeter.
Carolina Panthers have the league's most underrated defender in Derrick Brown
The former Auburn standout anchors Carolina’s front with a level of raw, herculean strength that few interior linemen can match. Against the run, he’s a wall of granite. His ability to reset the line of scrimmage is uncanny — powerful hands, impeccable leverage, and an understanding of how to lock out and shed that turns double teams into stalemates and solo blocks into disasters.
That consistency forces offensive coordinators to account for him on every snap. You can’t single-block Brown and expect to survive. He commands double teams, and when he draws them, Carolina’s linebackers feast.
Players like Trevin Wallace and Christian Rozeboom can flow freely downhill, clean to the ball carrier. This is because Brown has absorbed the chaos up front.
He’s a foundational piece. Brown is the type of player whose dominance doesn’t just flash on tape, but fundamentally changes how an opposing offense operates.
Even when teams try to take advantage of lighter boxes or spread formations, Brown’s presence doesn’t fade. He’s evolved into more than just a run-stuffer; he’s a disruptive force on passing downs, too.
His bull rush is violent and deliberate — a surge that collapses the pocket’s interior and erases a quarterback’s ability to step up. While his sack numbers may not mirror the league’s top pass rushers, even from the interior, his impact absolutely does.
Pocket movement caused by Brown leads to hurried throws, forced rollouts, and sack opportunities for others. Carolina’s defense, particularly in a rebuilding stretch, has leaned heavily on this dependability. In a market that rarely attracts national attention and on a roster that’s gone through countless changes and upheavals, his consistency has been one of the few constants.
Brown is the same player every single week. The No. 7 pick in 2020 is dominant, relentless, technically sound, and violently efficient.
When you study film of Carolina’s front, it’s impossible not to notice how often Brown takes on two men, holds his ground, and still manages to find the football. His combination of size, anchor strength, and short-area explosiveness makes him a nightmare in isolation.
Guards can’t move him; centers can’t reach him. He’s the rare defensive lineman who plays with both brute force and disciplined control — a player who knows when to attack or absorb.
For years, the Panthers have searched for stars on both sides of the ball. While others have come and gone, Brown has quietly become a legitimate cornerstone despite missing all but one game last season with a knee injury.
His performance rarely trends on social media, but his tape speaks volumes. Brown's the kind of player who makes everyone else’s job easier — the unselfish, tone-setting presence every elite defense needs.
So while the headlines will continue to belong to Bryce Young and rookie wideout Tetairoa McMillan, the core of Carolina's defense lies in the interior — where Brown continues to dominate in silence.