We’ve entered the Derrick Brown Era.
Carolina’s big man in the middle was recently ranked amongst the league’s very best by Pro Football Focus lead NFL analyst Sam Monson—who listed the top interior defenders going into the 2024 campaign. Monson positions Brown at No. 4:
The first player on the list who is more of a run specialist than a pass-rusher, Brown has been the best interior run defender in the game over the past two seasons, earning a 90.1 PFF run-defense grade.
He tallied a massive 53 defensive stops last season alone, 10 more than any other interior player.
Brown also tallied 103 total tackles in 2023, setting a new NFL single-season record for a defensive lineman. Those gaudy numbers helped the former seventh overall pick earn his first Pro Bowl nod, replacing future Hall of Famer and the now-retired Aaron Donald.
Only Kanas City’s Chris Jones (No. 1), New York’s Dexter Lawrence (No. 2) and the other New York’s Quinnen Williams (No. 3) ranked above Brown on Monson’s list.
