North Charlotte Today

The Carolina Panthers received encouraging news regarding several injured players, potentially impacting the remainder of their season. Rookie running back Jonathon Brooks may return to practice soon, as stated by Dave Canales. If Brooks begins practicing this week, it will activate a 21-day window for his potential addition to the active roster.

"He's checked all the boxes in terms of his getting back to being able to practice, so we're hoping to open up that window today. That's a decision we're going to have to make today," Canales mentioned on Monday. "So we're going to be talking about that and we have been, but excited to potentially get him out there and see what he looks like."

Brooks was drafted from Texas where he had an impressive college career with 1,139 yards and 10 touchdowns in 11 games before an ACL injury ended his season. Canales expressed hope that Brooks can bring similar performance levels to the Panthers.

"Explosive ability, combination of size and speed," said Canales about Brooks' attributes during his college days. "(His) body control I thought was really rare for what we've seen in the past couple of years."

Canales emphasized patience with Brooks' recovery due to the nature of his injury: "(It's just) making sure we feel fully confident, especially coming off the nature of an injury like this."

In Brooks' absence, Chuba Hubbard has led the Panthers' rushing attack effectively with an average of 5.6 yards per carry and third overall in rushing yards this season.

"We both bring two different attributes to the game, but yeah, very complementary," Hubbard remarked on playing alongside Brooks.

Beyond Brooks' potential return, cornerback Dane Jackson is progressing well within his own recovery window after a hamstring issue. "A lot of these decisions happen the next day or two for us... But (Dane's) looked great," noted Canales.

Jadeveon Clowney remains day-to-day following a shoulder injury but is expected back when ready: "For Jadeveon, we'll take whatever percentage of JD that we can get," said Canales.

Safety Sam Franklin Jr., outside linebacker D.J. Wonnum, and rookie defensive tackle Jaden Crumedy are also making strides toward returning from injuries according to updates provided by Canales.

"So we're excited to get him [Franklin] back out there," shared Canales while noting progress across various team members recovering from injuries.