Dec 8, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Carolina Panthers running back Jonathon Brooks (24) tries to get off the field after being injured against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

Pick for 'saddest' Carolina Panthers 2024 rookie an indictment of front office

Originally posted on Carolina Panthers on SI
By Tim Weaver | Last updated Jul 12, 2025 2:00 PM ET

Carolina Panthers general manager Dan Morgan had his moments in his first year on the job, especially when he signed Damien Lewis and Robert Hunt. However, he also earned low marks for some of his moves - especially in the 2024 NFL draft.

At the top, he traded back up to the end of the first round for South Carolina wide receiver Xavier Legette. While he still has plenty of time and promise to turn things around, Legette had a disappointing rookie year and will need to take a big step forward in 2025, otherwise he'll begin to earn a "bust" label.

Next, the Panthers took Texas running back Jonathon Brooks in Round 2, even though he was coming off an ACL tear just six months prior. Brooks also has time to grow, but given the way things are going it seems like a slim possibility that he'll be an impact player for this franchise.

As is appropriate, Joe Nicely at Rotoballer has picked Brooks as the team's worst - or saddest - rookie from the class of 2024.

"We’re using “worst” as a relative term when it comes to Jonathan Brooks, as “saddest” might be more appropriate to describe his unfortunate rookie season. The Panthers drafted Brooks following an ACL tear at Texas. Sadly, Brooks suffered another devastating ACL injury just three games into his first pro campaign."

Brooks' second ACL tear in as many years was to the same right knee - indicating that he came back too early from his first injury.

Now Brooks will have to sit out the entire 2025 NFL season, so by the time he's entering his third year he will have played a grand total of just 23 snaps at this level. Rico Dowdle may only be on a one-year deal, but it's not difficult to imagine Brooks falling out of the rotation completely if rookie Trevor Etienne performs well this year and starter Chuba Hubbard remains healthy.

That would mean another busted Day 2 draft pick for this franchise, and an easily avoidable one at that. Brooks was a stupendous prospect when healthy, but the ACL should have been a big enough red flag to hold off taking him that early.

Even though running backs are becoming more important again with each passing season, this was a case of a team investing way too much into a damaged-goods prospect at an easily-replaceable position with a high injury rate.

This article first appeared on Carolina Panthers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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