Derrick Brown (American football)

Derrick Brown

Brown with the Carolina Panthers in 2020
No. 95 – Carolina Panthers
Position:	Defensive end
Personal information
Born:	(1998-04-15) April 15, 1998 (age 26) Sugar Hill, Georgia, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:	320 lb (145 kg)
Career information
High school:	Lanier (Sugar Hill)
College:	Auburn (2016–2019)
NFL draft:	2020  / Round: 1 / Pick: 7
Career history
Carolina Panthers (2020–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
Pro Bowl (2023) PFWA All-Rookie Team (2020) Lott Trophy (2019) SEC Defensive Player of the Year (2019) First-team All–SEC (2019) Second-team All-SEC (2018)
Career NFL statistics as of 2023
Total tackles: 245 Sacks: 8.0 Pass deflections: 21 Interceptions: 2
Player stats at PFR

Derrick Brown (born April 15, 1998) is an American football defensive end for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Auburn and was drafted by the Panthers in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft.

Early life

Derrick Brown was born in Sugar Hill, Georgia on April 15, 1998. He later attended Lanier High School in Sugar Hill, Georgia, where he had 33.5 quarterback sacks, 270 tackles, 5 forced fumbles, and 3 interceptions as a defensive tackle. As a senior, Brown was seen as one of best high school defensive tackles in the nation, where he considered multiple schools during his recruitment, with Georgia and Alabama being seen as the favorites to land him, before he committed to Auburn University on February 3, 2016. ^[1]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	40‡	Commit date
Derrick Brown DT	Sugar Hill, Georgia	Lanier High School	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	317 lb (144 kg)	Feb 3, 2016
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:     Rivals:     247Sports:    ESPN grade: 90
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 3 (DT); 3 (East); 1 (GA)   Rivals: 3 (DT); 3 (Natl); 1 (GA)   247Sports: 9 (Natl); 4 (DT); 1 (GA)   ESPN: 3 (DT); 6 (East); 1 (GA)
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Auburn Football Commitments". Rivals.com. "2016 Auburn Football Commits". Scout.com. "ESPN". ESPN.com. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. "2016 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

College career

As a freshman in 2016, Brown's recorded 11 tackles with a sack and fumble recovery. ^[2] As a sophomore in 2017, Brown started in all 12 games, recorded 49 total tackles, 3.5 sacks, 8.5 tackles for a loss, and 2 forced fumbles. ^[2] Brown earned second-team All-Southeastern Conference (SEC) honors as a junior, with 48 tackles including 10.5 for a loss and 4.5 sacks. As a senior, he had 55 tackles including 12.5 tackles for a loss, four sacks, two forced fumbles and four pass breakups, earning himself All-American honors and was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. ^{[3] [4]}

College statistics

Year	Team	Class	GP	Tackles					Interceptions		Fumbles
				Solo	Ast	Tot	Loss	Sk	Int	PD	FF	FR
2016	Auburn	FR	8	3	8	11	1.5	1.0	0	1	0	1
2017	Auburn	SO	13	28	29	57	9.5	3.0	0	1	2	0
2018	Auburn	JR	13	26	22	48	10.5	4.5	0	2	1	1
2019	Auburn	SR	12	32	22	54	11.5	4.0	0	4	2	2
Career			46	89	81	170	33.0	12.5	0	8	5	4

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span	40-yard dash	10-yard split	20-yard split	20-yard shuttle	Three-cone drill	Vertical jump	Broad jump	Bench press
6 ft 4+5⁄8 in (1.95 m)	326 lb (148 kg)	34+1⁄4 in (0.87 m)	9 in (0.23 m)	5.16 s	1.73 s	2.98 s	4.79 s	8.22 s	27.0 in (0.69 m)	9 ft 0 in (2.74 m)	28 reps
All values from NFL Combine [5] [6]

Brown was selected seventh overall by the Carolina Panthers in the 2020 NFL draft. ^[3] He signed his four-year rookie contract on May 13, 2020, ^[7] worth a fully guaranteed $23.621 million. ^[8] He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Panthers on December 7, 2020, ^[9] and activated on December 11. ^[10] In Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers, Brown recorded his first two career sacks on Aaron Rodgers during the 24–16 loss. ^[11]

In Week 1 of the 2021 season against the New York Jets, Brown recorded his first sack of the season on Zach Wilson in the 19–14 win. ^[12]

In Week 3 of the 2022 season against the New Orleans Saints, Brown recorded his first career interception on Jameis Winston in the Panthers' 22–14 win. ^[13]

On April 8, 2024, the Panthers signed Brown to a four-year, $96 million extension, with $63.165 million guaranteed. ^[14]

Professional statistics

Year	Team	GP	GS	Tackles						Interceptions		Fumbles
				Solo	Ast	Tot	TFL	Sk	QBHits	Int	PD	FF	FR
2020	CAR	16	15	21	13	34	8	2.0	12	0	4	0	0
2021	CAR	16	14	27	14	41	8	3.0	9	0	4	0	0
2022	CAR	17	17	30	37	67	5	1.0	12	1	7	0	0
2023	CAR	17	17	57	46	103	7	2.0	15	1	6	0	0
Career		66	63	135	110	245	28	8.0	48	2	21	0	0

Personal life

Brown's wife is Tayla Main, and together they have two children, a son and a daughter. ^[15]

References

1. "Derrick Brown, Lanier , Defensive Tackle". 247Sports.
2. "Derrick Brown - Football". Auburn University Athletics. Archived from the original on June 16, 2018. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
3. Green, Tom (April 23, 2020). "Auburn's Derrick Brown selected by Carolina Panthers in 1st round of 2020 NFL Draft". AL.com. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
4. "Derrick Brown College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
5. "Derrick Brown Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
6. "2020 NFL Draft Scout Derrick Brown College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
7. "Derrick Brown signs rookie contract". Panthers.com. May 13, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
8. Baca, Michael (May 8, 2020). "Derrick Brown, Panthers agree on 4-year, $23.6M deal". NFL.com . Retrieved December 8, 2023.
9. Gantt, Darin (December 7, 2020). "Panthers place eight players on reserve/COVID list". Panthers.com. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
10. Bryan, Will (December 11, 2020). "Three players activated from reserve/COVID-19 list". Panthers.com. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
11. "Carolina Panthers at Green Bay Packers - December 19th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 20, 2020.
12. "Jets 14-19 Panthers (Sep 12, 2021) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
13. "Saints 14-22 Panthers (Sep 25, 2022) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
14. Gantt, Darin (April 5, 2024). "Panthers extend defensive tackle Derrick Brown". Panthers.com. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
15. Inabinett, Mark (October 9, 2020). "'Good little talk' with dad gets Derrick Brown going". AL.com. Retrieved December 8, 2023.

External links

• Carolina Panthers bio
• Auburn Tigers bio