Jonathon Brooks has now been more snakebitten than fellow Longhorn RB Roschon Johnson. After finally getting his opportunity for the Texas Longhorns in the 2023 season, and really running with it… Brooks’ collegiate  breakout ended early with an ACL tear, which also caused him to drop out of the first round in a very weak running back draft class. When he was finally activated in 2024 by Carolina, Brooks once again tore his ACL in week 14, just 3 weeks into getting eased back into action.

Carolina has really shored up the RB room in preparation of this move. The team extended Chuba Hubbard last season, signed Rico Dowdle as a high quality complimentary back, and drafted Trevor Etienne in the 4th round of the 2025 draft. While Brooks may have more raw talent and better draft capital than the rest of the RB room, there are a lot of uncertainties in returning to form from back to back ACL tears… to a team that may still be struggling offensively… with a potentially crowded backfield. Brooks’ football future may really begin on another team on a second contract, 2 years from now. 

Author: Lukasz Stec (@Lukasz_FF01)