Only a few days removed from Dan Morgan refusing to set expectations for the 2024 iteration of the Carolina Panthers, Derrick Brown is making bold promises to the Panther faithful.
“I think it started the first day we reported for OTAs,” Brown said after practice Saturday. “I think the tone was set by Coach [Dave] Canales and Coach E [Ejiro Evero]. We’re gonna do the things. We’re gonna have a way and we’re gonna live and abide by that way. Nobody’s resisted that, everybody’s bought in.”
He echoed this sentiment earlier in the week when he was asked on-field about what made this version of the Panthers better than the 2023 team.
“We gotta go out and prove to everybody that this not the Panthers no more, the old sorry a– Panthers. We gotta go out there and do what we gotta do.”
#Panthers DL Derrick Brown keeping it 100 when discussing the team’s mindset heading into the 2024 campaign.
“We gotta go out and prove to everybody that this not the Panthers no more, the old sorry ass Panthers. We gotta go out there and do what we gotta do.”
Full interview… pic.twitter.com/nbxJRZJBxb
— Gabe McDonald (@GabeMcDonald_) July 24, 2024
Brown hasn’t enjoyed a winning season for the Panthers since he was first drafted. He is currently attempting to change that reality.
Though Brown is exuding confidence publically. Morgan, the Panthers’ general manager took a far more cautious approach when setting expectations moving forward.
“I’m not going to put any expectations on anything right now,” Morgan said Tuesday as veteran players reported for the start of training camp. “What I do know is there is a lot of work ahead of us, not only from a personnel standpoint but from the players. … In terms of playoffs, we will reach that goal when we’re ready. But I think right now we are focused on today and tomorrow and getting better as a team.”
Brown remains part of Morgan’s process. The Panthers signed the star defensive lineman to a $96 million deal during the heart of the offseason.
“We have a plan in place. We have a process,” Morgan said. “We are aligned in that plan and we’re going to stick to it. I feel like if we’re disciplined and we stick to our plan on building this thing that we will build a winner eventually. I think we are pretty confident in that.”
After a 2-15 2023 season and an offseason of upheaval, Brown and Morgan hope that this version of the Panthers is drastically different from the team that took the field last fall.
“I mean, we got a fresh opportunity to go out and do something special. You know, it sucks to go 2-15,” Brown said. “You’ve got to come in and go to work every single day with that hanging over your head, and it is what it is, but you’ve got to go out and do your job. So this presents an opportunity for us to go out here and turn this around and do something special.”
