3 winners (and 2 losers) from Carolina Panthers 2024 offseason overhaul
By Dean Jones
Winner No. 2
Derrick Brown - Carolina Panthers DL
There was one shining light on the Carolina Panthers above all else last season. Derrick Brown continued his rapid emergence into one of the league's best defensive linemen with a phenomenal campaign in extremely difficult circumstances. Something that cements his status as the team's best overall player for good measure.
Brown is a cornerstone piece for the Panthers to build around long-term. He's a model of consistency and has enhanced his production with every passing year since being taken No. 7 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft. Letting good players walk became an ongoing frustration under previous regimes. That is not a mistake Dan Morgan plans to make moving forward.
Trading Brian Burns wasn't ideal, but Morgan was left with no choice after how his contract situation was managed by those who held positions of influence before. The new general manager was eager not to go through similar complications with Brown, getting an extension done before talk of holding out with one year remaining on his deal gathered pace.
After breaking the NFL's single-season tackle record for interior defensive linemen and making his first Pro Bowl, the Panthers rewarded Brown accordingly. He signed a four-year, $96 million contract that included a $25 million signing bonus and $59.31 million guaranteed. This ties the one-time Auburn college prospect to the franchise for his prime seasons and makes it abundantly clear Carolina is doing things differently under Morgan and Brandt Tilis.
Brown also got some extra assistance on the defensive front. The Panthers moved swiftly to secure the services of A'Shawn Robinson, who is a strong force against the run and knows Ejiro Evero's system having worked with the coordinator previously.
This represents a significant upgrade on anything Carolina churned out opposite their franchise defensive player last time around, which could take away some of the constant double and triple teams that came his way in 2023. If Brown benefits from Robinson's presence and uses his new deal as a source of motivation, a potential All-Pro campaign could be in the offing.