Carolina interim coach Chris Tabor thinks Panthers defensive lineman Derrick Brown is “having a heck of a year.”

“What is he? (Four) tackles short of a hundred,” Tabor said on Wednesday afternoon. “I mean, think about that — at that position and to have the opportunity to get over a hundred tackles. I’ve said it for weeks: I don’t call him DB; I call him Pro Bowler. That’s how I feel about him.”

But that’s not quite how the selection process for the Pro Bowl Games felt about the former Auburn All-American, even with Brown on the verge of becoming the first defensive interior lineman to reach 100 tackles in a season during the tackles-as-an-official-stat era.

When the rosters for the Pro Bowl Games were announced on Wednesday night, the NFC’s defensive interior linemen were the Los Angeles Rams’ Aaron Donald, New York Giants’ Dexter Lawrence and San Francisco 49ers’ Javon Hargrave.

Brown is the first alternate.

Brown has recorded 96 tackles, one sack, six tackles for loss, 13 quarterback hits, one interception and five passes defended while playing 876 defensive snaps this season.

Chosen as a Pro Bowler for the 10th time, Donald has recorded 53 tackles, eight sacks, 16 tackles for loss, 23 quarterback hits and three passes defended while playing 867 defensive snaps.

Chosen as Pro Bowler for the second time, Lawrence has recorded 52 tackles, 4.5 sacks, seven tackles for loss, 19 quarterback hits and two passes defended while playing 670 defensive snaps.

Chosen as a Pro Bowler for the second time, Javon Hargrave has recorded 44 tackles, seven sacks, eight tackles for loss, 14 quarterback hits and one pass defended while playing 615 defensive snaps.

While his tackle stat dwarfs the Pro Bowlers’ production in that area, Brown doesn’t have the pass-rush statistics of the all-stars.

Carolina defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said that didn’t mean Brown hasn’t been affecting the opposing quarterback.

“People are definitely accounting for him,” Carolina defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said last month. “He’s getting more blockers, more attention, the center turn — all those different types of things. But he’s been so disruptive — run game and pass game.

“A lot of people are going to focus on the run — and rightfully so, he’s done a heck of a job. But you even look at the rush production – and, yeah, he only has one sack, I believe — but he’s affecting the quarterback and he’s pushing the pocket and he’s done a lot of good things. Obviously, he’s knocking the ball down, a lot of batted balls. He’s playing at a Pro Bowl-level, that’s for damn sure. …

“You go watch the tape, and you’re not going to find a lot of players playing at a better level.”

Brown has 10 more tackles than any other defensive interior lineman in the NFL this season, with the Minnesota Vikings’ Harrison Phillips next on the list.

Brown has obliterated the Carolina record for tackles by a defensive lineman set at 67 by Mike Rucker in 2002 and tied by Brown last season.

But tackle records can be tricky. Profootballreference.com has combined-tackle statistics since 1987 and solo tackles since 1994. But it wasn’t until 2001 that tackles became an official statistic for the NFL. Even so, the “Official National Football League Record and Fact Book” doesn’t list annual leaders for tackles among the other yearly statistical champs for rushing yards, interceptions, field goals and all the other numbers.

But since 2001, only one defensive interior lineman has exceeded 95 tackles in one season – the Miami Dolphins’ Chistian Wilkins with 98 last season. Wilkins didn’t get picked for the Pro Bowl Games either.

Carolina’s record likely didn’t help Brown’s all-star cause. At 2-14, the Panthers are the worst team in the NFL.

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Brown and Carolina will close the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at noon CST Sunday at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Buccaneers will win the NFC South if they beat Carolina. If Tampa Bay loses, it won’t make the postseason field.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.