Carolina Panthers coordinator explains how Derrick Brown brings ‘flexibility’ to defense
Amid a disappointing NFC South division loss to kick off the season, Derrick Brown was hard to miss. The 6-foot-5, 320-pound defensive lineman was all over the place in Atlanta.
And while the Panthers’ run defense struggled against the Falcons in a 24-10 loss, Brown shined as he showed off his versatility and grit at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“He plays really, really hard,” said Ejiro Evero, the Panthers’ first-year defensive coordinator. “He’s always chasing the ball. And for a man that big to play that many plays and play with that effort is pretty special.”
Brown has the ability to line up at defensive end, defensive tackle and nose tackle with the defensive front.
With the Panthers switching from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense, the 2020 first-round pick’s versatility makes Evero’s job easier. It also make the scheme conversion a tad bit smoother, at least in the starting lineup.
“When you talk about matchups — you’re trying to get matchups in coverage, trying to get matchups on the second level — and it’s no different up front,” Evero said. “And when you have a guy like Derrick that can play all the way across (the line), and you get him lined up on a tight end, they definitely don’t want to deal with him, right? And then you can play him on guards, centers — wherever you feel like you want to get that matchup to exploit— it’s really great to have a guy like him who has that flexibility.”
Along with his versatility, Brown impressed Evero with his determination and endurance against Atlanta.
Brown played 50 snaps — good for 96.2% of the total defensive snaps — and produced eight tackles (two for loss) and a sack. He also batted the opening pass by Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder, who was forced to catch the ball to avoid a costly game-starting interception.
“Derrick was stout,” Evero said. “Derrick showed some rush, and the best thing I thought he did was hustle to the ball, and you saw him make the play on the screen (17 yards downfield) on the third-and-long, and I don’t think he gets enough credit for that.”
This story was originally published September 14, 2023 at 11:51 AM.
