During Sunday's 22-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, Carolina Panthers running back Jonathon Brooks tore his ACL, per ESPN insider Adam Schefter.
It is the same ACL (Brooks' right knee) that he tore during his collegian days at Texas. Brooks was just medically cleared less than a month ago from his original tear, missing the first 11 games of the season. In three games played with the Panthers Brooks took nine carries for 22 yards, also catching three passes for 23 yards.
This is a brutal blow for the rookie. It's definitely not impossible, but it's going to be very hard for him to not only recover, but get back to the form he had while in college. Brooks will obviously miss the rest of this year, and it will be tough for him to play at all during the 2025 season.
It took Brooks a full calendar year to recover from his first ACL tear, so it's possible that he misses the 2025 season entirely. Giving him over a year and a half to make certain that he is 100 percent might be the best route for Brooks to ensure both his health and his playing future.
As for the Panthers, they are fortunately in good hands with starting running back Chuba Hubbard. Carolina gave Hubbard, who already has over 1,000 rushing yards on the year, a four-year contract extension last month. Even though it's nice for the Panthers to have Hubbard, they were surely looking forward to seeing what he and Brooks could do as a tandem.
The Panthers traded up in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft to select Brooks 46th overall. It's a high price to pay for a player who will basically miss his first two years, but this doesn't have to be the end for Brooks.
Los Angeles Chargers running back J.K. Dobbins has had multiple knee injuries throughout his career and is still playing at a high level. Hopefully Brooks can heal properly and carve out a solid career for himself.
