Derrick Brown’s performance in Carolina’s first game of the 2023 NFL season gave credence to the idea that the Panthers hadn’t made the best use of the former Auburn All-American since selecting him with the seventh choice in the 2020 NFL Draft.

In Carolina’s 24-10 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Brown led the Panthers with eight tackles – all solo stops. The defensive tackle had one sack for a 13-yard loss and two tackles for loss.

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Brown recorded one sack in each of the past two seasons. He posted the second-highest single-game tackle total of his NFL career, behind a 12-tackle showing in 37-34 loss to the Falcons on Oct. 30, 2022. Brown reached his previous career high of five solo tackles in that game.

“Derrick was stout,” Carolina defensive coordinator Eijro Evero said this week. “Derrick showed some rush. And the best thing I thought he did was hustle to the ball. You saw him make the play on the screen on third-and-long. I don’t think he gets enough credit for that. I mean, he plays really, really hard. He’s always chasing the ball, and for a man that big to play that many plays and play with that effort is pretty special.”

In his first season with the Panthers, Evero has switched Carolina to a 3-4 base defense after the team had used a four-man front throughout Brown’s career. Against Atlanta, the Panthers lined up Brown at several spots.

“When you talk about matchups, you’re trying to get matchups in coverage, you’re trying to get matchups on the second level, and it’s no different up front,” Evero said. “When you have a guy like Derrick that could play all the way across, and, like, you get him lined up on a tight end, they definitely don’t want to deal with him, right? And then you could play him on guards, centers, wherever you feel like you want to get that matchup to exploit. It’s really great to have a guy like him that has that flexibility.”

Brown was on the field for 50 of Carolina’s 52 defensive snaps as well as five special-teams plays in the opener.

“You always want to have some type of rotation,” Evero said. “Obviously, our No. 1 guys are going to play a little bit more. But, like, the name of the game is to spell them and give them the rest so they’re at their best at the end of the game and also so they can last through the season.”

Carolina plays the New Orleans Saints at 6:15 p.m. CDT Monday at Bank of America Field in Charlotte, North Carolina. ESPN will televise the game.

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