Panthers put Jonathon Brooks on IR and promote Isaiah Simmons to active roster

The Panthers placed running back Jonathon Brooks on injured reserve Wednesday after he aggravated a groin problem in Sunday's win over Atlanta. The club's transaction announcement makes Brooks unavailable for at least four games. It also moves safety Isaiah Simmons from the practice squad to the active roster, using the vacancy for a different position rather than adding another running back immediately.

Brooks had been working back from two ACL injuries and missed the entire 2025 season. Carolina said the groin issue had bothered him between the preseason and Week 1 before he left the Falcons game late. The team's transactions page records both the Brooks placement and Simmons signing on September 23, along with linebacker Maema Njongmeta joining the practice squad. Those are completed roster moves; they do not establish who will take every backfield snap.

NFL Network reported that Brooks was expected to undergo surgery for a core muscle injury and miss at least six weeks, citing sources. The Panthers' public transaction confirms injured reserve and its four-game minimum; the longer timetable is a report, not a team-announced return date. Carolina has not named the week in which Brooks will be cleared.

For fantasy and roster managers, the immediate backfield question is how Carolina divides the work behind Chuba Hubbard. The NFL report identifies veteran AJ Dillon as the backup and credits Brooks with 11 touches for 73 yards in his first two games. Those early touches showed Brooks had a role, but they are too small a sample to project a season-long workload for anyone else.

Simmons' promotion answers a different depth need. Carolina said he had already been elevated for each of the first two games and was among its leading special-teams players. Brooks' absence leaves the running-back rotation to be set through practice and game-day usage. The next reliable checkpoints are Carolina's roster transactions and Sunday's inactive list, not an assumed replacement based on one practice report.