The offseason has gotten off to a good start for Carolina Panthers defensive lineman Derrick Brown.

After the Panthers tabbed Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales as their new head coach in January, Brown had one wish for the new coaching staff – that it stay the same, at least on his side of the ball.

“I want the same coaching staff again,” Brown said while at the Pro Bowl Games. “This will be the first season where I’ve had the same coaches again.”

Even though Carolina posted the NFL’s worst record during the 2023 season at 2-15, only three defenses in the league gave up fewer yards than the Panthers in their first season under coordinator Ejiro Evero.

At his introductory press conference, Canales said after facing Evero’s defense twice in NFC South games during the 2023 season, he hoped the coordinator would choose to stay on for the 2024 season.

“For me, this is a huge piece of what we’re doing,” Canales said.

Evero decided to remain with Carolina, and his staff will be back, too, including defensive-line coach Todd Wash.

“I went through, I think, (five) coaches in four years,” Brown said about his position group before Evero’s decision. “So I think if Wash comes back, this will be a little bit of stability for me and allow me to be able to take the next step in my game and continue to grow without having to restart the process.”

Brown flourished in his first season under Evero, who switched the Panthers from a primarily four-man defensive front to three down linemen.

The former Auburn All-American recorded 103 tackles in 17 games this season – 11 more than any other NFL defensive lineman had in 2023. Since tackles became an official statistic in 2001, Brown had five more than any other defensive tackle had recorded in one season.

Brown also had two sacks, seven tackles for loss, 15 quarterback hits, one interception and five pass break-ups during his fourth NFL season.

Brown piled up his stats while playing 940 defensive snaps, the third-most among the league’s linemen in 2023.

“He’s had a heck of a year,” Evero said about Brown before Carolina’s final game of the season. “He’s been so disruptive. I don’t think it’s arguably — I think he’s been the best run defender in the NFL this year. He’s done a heck of a job rushing the quarterback and creating pressures, the interception, the batted balls. There’s been so much production. The leadership. He’s been instrumental in everything that we’ve done.”

The Panthers ensured that Brown would be back for his fifth season by exercising their option on his contract last offseason.

As the seventh player picked in the 2020 NFL Draft, Brown signed a four-year contract worth $23.621 million.

Every drafted player gets a four-year contract, and those for first-round draft choices carry a team option for a fifth season. By picking up its fifth-year option, Carolina guaranteed Brown a $11.665 million payday for the 2024 season and kept him from becoming a free agent after the 2023 campaign.

Brown helped the NFC win at the Pro Bowl Games earlier this month with contributions in the obstacle-course race and tug-of-war.

Brown was a unanimous All-American selection at Auburn in 2019, when he won the Lott IMPACT Trophy.

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