Why does Panthers’ Jeremy Chinn think he’s NFL’s best defensive rookie? Here’s his case
Panthers rookie Jeremy Chinn smiled and looked away briefly, perhaps embarrassed by the question.
He was asked to state his case for winning the NFL’s defensive rookie of the year award.
Chinn isn’t one who demands attention. He speaks in a quiet tone during interviews. But on Tuesday, he answered the question.
Kind of.
“I would just say, ‘watch the film,’ ” Chinn said. “That’s my only argument. I’m not going to sit here and plead for myself on the microphone. I’d rather do that on the film.”
Chinn is one of the top candidates for this year’s defensive rookie of the year. His main competition is Washington Football Team’s Chase Young. The Panthers (4-10) and WFT (6-8) play this Sunday.
The Observer polled 21 of the 50 voters of the award last week, and only two said they were leaning toward Chinn. Seven said they were leaning toward Young, while the others either were not sure yet, or had both on their short list.
Chinn has 101 tackles, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, two defensive touchdowns and one interception this year. He plays multiple positions for the Panthers, including linebacker and safety, and has been arguably the Panthers’ most important player on defense.
Young, who plays defensive end, has 38 tackles, 5.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and one defensive touchdown. Washington Football Team has a one game lead in the NFC East division race.
There are two games left in the 2020 season, including Sunday at Washington. Chinn said he plans to finish the season strong.
“I’m not satisfied with anything I’ve accomplished,” he said.
In other news
The Panthers announced Tuesday that they were activating starting defensive tackle Zach Kerr from the COVID/reserve list. Kerr was one of eight Panthers’ players added to the list Dec. 7.
He missed the Panthers’ last two games.
Carolina also announced it was placing second-year offensive guard Dennis Daley on injured reserve, ending his season. Daley suffered a concussion in Week 11 against the Lions and has not practiced since.
