For the first time in his young career, Jonathon Brooks is getting through a training camp healthy — and the flashes have been worth the wait. The problem the Panthers have isn’t getting him on the field. It’s resisting the urge to do it too soon.
Brooks, Carolina’s second-round pick in 2024 and the first running back taken in that draft, has been one of the more encouraging stories of camp. He’s shown the burst and explosiveness that made him a coveted prospect coming out of Texas, and by some accounts he’s flashed a gear that not even Chuba Hubbard or the rest of the backfield can match. After everything he’s been through, just seeing him move like that again is a win.
The injury history is the whole context
The caution isn’t paranoia — it’s earned. Brooks has torn the ACL in his right knee twice. The first came during his final season at Texas, which dropped him to the second round. The second came in December 2024, during his rookie year, in a game against the Eagles that ended a debut season that had barely started — he finished with nine carries for 22 yards across three games. Then he spent the entire 2025 season on the sidelines. That’s two lost years for a back who hasn’t yet turned in a full NFL season.
So when the Panthers talk about managing his snaps this preseason, it isn’t a red flag about a new setback. It’s the opposite. He sat out the Hall of Fame Game against Arizona alongside Bryce Young and the other established starters, and Carolina has been deliberate about how much they expose him in exhibition action. For a player coming off back-to-back ACLs on the same knee, controlled practice reps are more valuable than preseason carries anyway.
The plan is Week 1, not August
Head coach Dave Canales and the staff have a plan, and it points at the regular season, not the exhibition schedule. The Panthers can afford patience here — the backfield still has Hubbard, Rico Dowdle and Trevor Etienne to carry the load in the meantime, and camp has already been unkind elsewhere, with edge rusher Nic Scourton and receiver Chris Brazzell II both lost for the year.
Fans understandably want to see Brooks turn the corner and rip off a long run in a Panthers uniform. The smarter version of this story is the boring one: keep him upright, build him up through practice, and let the explosion show up when the games count. If Carolina gets that right, the wait finally pays off.
