# Derrick Brown (American football)

Derrick Brown (born April 15, 1998) is an American professional football defensive end for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Auburn Tigers where he was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year in 2019, and was selected 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.
College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | 40$^‡$ |
| Derrick Brown DT | Sugar Hill, Georgia | Lanier High School | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 317 lb (144 kg) | Feb 3, 2016 |
| 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. 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. 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.

### College statistics

| Year | Team | Class | GP | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Interceptions | Interceptions | Fumbles | Fumbles |
| Year | Team | Class | GP | 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 | Career | 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 ||||||||||||
Brown was selected seventh overall by the Carolina Panthers in the 2020 NFL draft. He signed his four-year rookie contract on May 13, 2020, worth a fully guaranteed $23.621 million. He was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list by the Panthers on December 7, and activated on December 11. In Week 15 against the Green Bay Packers, Brown recorded his first two career sacks on Aaron Rodgers during the 24–16 loss. He was named to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.
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.
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.
On April 8, 2024, the Panthers signed Brown to a four-year, $96 million extension, with $63.165 million guaranteed.
Brown suffered a meniscus injury in Week 1 of the 2024 season and was placed on injured reserve on September 10, 2024.

### Professional statistics

Legend :
| | NFL Record (DT Position) |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Tackles | Interceptions | Interceptions | Fumbles | Fumbles |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | 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 |
| 2024 | CAR | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | Career | 67 | 64 | 136 | 112 | 248 | 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.