CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- It's Tuesday, so one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL is in his happy place, riding a John Deere Model B tractor about an hour and a half from Bank of America Stadium on a large slice of land he purchased in Kershaw County, South Carolina.
Derrick Brown loves his day job with the Carolina Panthers, who made him the seventh pick of the 2020 draft out of Auburn. His return after suffering a season-ending knee injury in last year's opener is a big reason coordinator Ejiro Evero's defense has gone from worst in 2024 to 11th heading into Sunday's game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field (1 p.m. ET, Fox).
He asked last month to be used more as a pass rusher, so he could become a three-down player, which has made him one of the more complete defensive linemen in the NFL.
Brown gets his energy to excel on Sundays by spending his Tuesdays clearing land and doing chores on his tractor. He needed it more this week than most after the defense's disastrous performance in Sunday's 40-9 loss to the Buffalo Bills in which James Cook III blistered the league's seventh-ranked run defense for 216 yards and two touchdowns.
"It gives me a chance to check out from this fancy side of life and get back to blue-collar life a little,'' Brown said. "It's peaceful and it's quiet. All I hear is the engine. Nothing else. I love it.''
Brown admittedly was humbled by what the Bills did to him and the Carolina defense. He had one tackle against Buffalo, a week after he had seven against the Jets to go with three pass deflections and his first two-sack game since his rookie season.
On Sunday, he tweaked a knee late in the fourth quarter, which sidelined him for the rest of the game, but Brown and coach Dave Canales assured afterwards it wasn't serious enough to keep him out this week when the 4-4 Panthers face the 5-1-1 Packers.
That left Brown looking forward to a Tuesday trip to his farm to ride his tractor and refocus before preparing for the trip to Green Bay.
"Sometimes I just go out there with my son and ride all day,'' Brown said with a smile.
Brown fell in love with tractors as a kid in Mississippi working with his grandfather. He did everything from planting crops to pulling stumps. Recently, he has been checking out old tractors for sale on Facebook to counter the heat he's taken from his grandfather for owning a newer model with a cabin and air conditioning.
"He calls me a fancy tractor owner,'' Brown said with a laugh.
Brown earned a Pro Bowl berth in 2023 when he became the first defensive lineman in NFL history to have more than 100 tackles in a season (103). Not having that presence last season after Brown suffered a season-ending meniscus tear in the season opener, played a role Carolina's historically bad defense. But Brown came back stronger than ever this season and asked Canales for more third-down opportunities to rush the quarterback.
He had a sack the next game and two more two weeks later.
"I don't want to be a pass rusher,'' Brown insisted. "I just want to be a dominant player. So that's in every phase of it, being able to rush the quarterback, being able to stop the run. I want to be good in all phases.''
He showed that a few weeks ago, becoming the first player with five tackles, three batted passes and two sacks in a game since J.J. Watt in 2014.
Rookie edge rusher Nic Scourton loves Brown's old-school approach and that he is energized by riding a tractor.
"The ultimate professional, knowing how to manage work and life, being with the family and kids,'' he said. "You need that escape for a day so you can come back regrouped and locked in for the week.''
Staying on the field for more pass-rushing opportunities requires more film study to learn opponent's tendencies, but Brown has made it look seamless.
"Derrick is a dominant player, so we need to get him on the field more,'' defensive end A'Shawn Robinson said.
He paused, then added, "You don't get $24 million a year not knowing how to rush.''
Brown had a reputation as a run-stopper with only eight sacks in his first 67 games, but with three sacks over a three-game stretch, he's showing more, and it's helping his teammates.
"He's relentless,'' Canales said. "And that's infectious for the whole group. You see a group running to the ball, and that starts with Derrick Brown. And it's the reason why we have to have this guy long term, the reason why he's a captain.''
Brown isn't just dominant on Sundays. He brings the same attitude to practice.
"He chases the ball down,'' Canales said. "If it's thrown down the field, he comes out of the stack and he chases the pass. If it's a run, he knocks it back, gets off the block and runs down the line of scrimmage, whether it's to him or away from him.
"It's that type of mentality that should be the standard.''
Brown was rewarded in April 2024 with a four-year, $96 million extension with more than $63 million in guarantees.
He is so valuable to the Panthers that general manager Dan Morgan wouldn't consider making him a part of any potential trade with the Dallas Cowboys when he talked to them before the season about possibly acquiring Micah Parsons.
"He's one of our best players, if not our best player,'' Evero said. "Derrick is a very big part of what we do, and we have to find opportunities to give him more opportunities.''
Brown's impact goes beyond what happens during the game. When Robinson lost his cool afterwards and got into a shouting match with Bills offensive tackle Dion Dawkins, it was Brown who grabbed his teammate's 320-pound frame from behind and manhandled him away as though he was slinging down a running back half that size.
Those are the things that gets Brown noticed -- and the things Brown doesn't like to think about on Tuesdays when he's riding his tractor.
"I get to play a child's game and make a lot of money,'' Brown said. "As long as I hear that engine going, I'm good.''