2022 really seems to be Derrick Brown’s year—on and off the field.
On Tuesday morning, the third-year defensive tackle was named the Carolina Panthers’ nominee for this season’s Walter Payton Man of the Year award. The honor recognizes excellence on the gridiron and in the community, which Brown has exhibited through the work for his charity—The Derrick Brown Foundation Inc.
Brown’s foundation sets out to impact at-risk youth and families, from Charlotte, N.C. to his home state of Georgia. The initiative has helped over 3,000 children and 4,000 families since 2020.
“We didn’t have everything, so we had people that would help us,” Brown said in the team’s official release regarding his nomination. “I think about it all the time – those that helped me, helped my parents. It’s just one of those things in life where I’m just like, all the moments that I had growing up, there’s a kid out there just like me, growing up in that same situation I grew up in. I keep that mindset over and over and over again.”
Each team’s nominee will receive a $40,000 donation to the charity of their choice. The winner, which receives an additional $250,000 donation, will be announced at the annual NFL Honors event.
As for the on-field part of the award, Brown is living up to those standards with a career year. He has recorded 50 tackles, a sack and six passes defensed in what’s been an emergent campaign for the 24-year-old.
