Even though an Atlanta Falcons’ victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would put Carolina at the top of the NFC South standings, Panthers defensive lineman Derrick Brown couldn’t bring himself to cheer for the Falcons on Thursday night.
It was a bridge too far for the former Auburn All-American after six seasons in the division.
“I definitely wanted to push for the way that’s going to be best for us, for sure, in that situation,” Brown said during an appearance on “The Rich Eisen Show” on Friday. “But I wouldn’t necessarily say rooting for either side. …
“I mean, I just think the competitiveness and all that, you know, I hold that year round, so it is what it is on that end.”
Without Brown’s support, Atlanta still came through for Carolina by overcoming a 14-point, fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Buccaneers 29-28 with a 43-yard field goal on the final snap of the game.
The loss dropped Tampa Bay to 7-7 for the 2025 season as the Bucs slipped behind the 7-6 Panthers at the top of the NFC South standings.
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Carolina plays the New Orleans Saints at 3:25 p.m. CST Sunday at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
The game will be the first for the Panthers in sole possession of the division lead since Jan. 3, 2016, when Carolina defeated Tampa Bay 38-10 to finish its NFL regular-season schedule with a 15-1 record.
“To be able to play meaningful football here in December, it’s a blessing,” Brown said, “but also, too, I mean this is what we wanted from the beginning. So, I mean, now we got to take care of business and that starts with this week going to New Orleans. …
“They just had an explosive win last weekend versus the Bucs. And right now, we got to do what we got to do to even put ourselves in that position and take care of that stuff next week. So, I mean, right now, focus on New Orleans through and through.”
New Orleans defeated the Bucs 24-20 on Dec. 7, one of Tampa Bay’s five losses in its past six games to slide back to the Panthers, who had a 1-3 record at the end of the first month of the season.
After Carolina plays on Sunday, the Panthers and Buccaneers will each have three games remaining on their regular-season schedules, and two of those games will be against each other.
Carolina and Tampa Bay play in Charlotte, North Carolina on Dec. 21 and in Tampa, Florida, on Jan. 4. In between those games, the Panthers play the Seattle Seahawks and the Buccaneers play the Miami Dolphins.
“It’s the same process that we’ve had all year,” Carolina coach Dave Canales said about Sunday’s meeting with the Saints, who beat the Panthers 17-7 on Nov. 9. “Every game is a championship opportunity and where we’ve been even before the game (Thursday) night, approaching this game and respecting the opponent, respecting the Saints and the challenges that we have right in front of us. And so that’s got to be the focus. And for us, our pursuit is to find our best football and to continue to work on the things from all phases that we’re trying to improve upon and that we can count on. And so keeping the guys locked in and focused on that and understanding we have this opportunity right in front of us in the division. And what’s looking at us, it’s easy for me to sell that.”
Brown joined the Panthers from Auburn as the seventh selection in the 2020 NFL Draft. Carolina has a 26-54 record with Brown in the lineup, but the Panthers have an even worse record during that span without Brown on the field at 5-12.
The defensive lineman missed 16 games last season because of a knee injury. He has rebounded to start every game in 2025.
“I just kind of sit here in awe,” Brown said. “Like last year, sitting out of football, man, it definitely made me realize how much I actually love this game. You know, you say you love it until it’s taken away from you. So, I mean, just being able to sit there and go through every single day of rehabbing and fighting back to be able to be back out there with my brothers on Sunday and be able to play for one another, that was the biggest thing for me.”
