Unsung hero paved the way for the Panthers’ comeback win and deserves more recognition for the way he stepped up
Brady Christensen was the ultimate team player in Week 5.
The Carolina Panthers had a lot of praise-worthy players in the comeback win against the Miami Dolphins in Week 5 and there’s a lot of flowers to give out following that game.
Running back Rico Dowdle obviously had the performance of the week in the entire league and wide receiver Xavier Legette had a nice feel-good moment to give life to the Panthers’ sideline, but the real unsung hero of the week for Carolina was Brady Christensen.
Since being drafted in 2021, Christensen has been a serviceable starter for the Panthers but slid into the backup role after the revamped additions the front office has made up-front over the last three seasons. Yet, he’s continuing to show how valuable he can be for this team now on his second contract despite not holding a starting position going into the season.
“He’s really tough,” head coach Dave Canales said of Christensen before Week 5. “He’s very intelligent, he’s willing, he wants to win. He wants to help the team in any way possible. We use him as a big tight end. We’ve played him at center, at guard, the tackle spots, all those things. And we can count on him because he studies, he does the work, and he’s ready to go, and I love his willingness to just help the team in whatever way possible.”
Week 5 was the perfect example of that.
Brady Christensen was a key player in Panthers’ Week 5 win over Dolphins
Going into Week 5, the Panthers were forced to place two different starting right guards on the injured reserve. The opening starter, Robert Hunt, suffered a torn biceps in Week 2. Two weeks later, his replacement Chandler Zavala, suffered a knee injury that forced him onto the IR as well.
Those two losses put the Panthers in a bind, but the team had a trustworthy player to slide into the open spot in Christensen and he put together a strong outing on Sunday.
Christensen had the third-highest offensive grade (75.7) on the team in Week 5 and his pass-blocking (77.5) and run-blocking (71.1) grades each were in the top three on the team. The way he stepped up and showed out at right guard was impressive stuff in both areas of the game.
Not only did Christensen hold up well at right guard both in pass protection and in the run game, it’s worth reminding that right guard is not his natural position. In fact, it’s safe to question what Christensen’s “natural position” actually is.
Going into the game, it was believed that Christensen would be the first player in franchise history to start one game at all five offensive line position. After the game, the team’s release confirmed that rare feat Christensen was able to add to his résumé.
Brady Christensen Facts By Position
- LT: 6 career starts, 463 total offensive snaps
- LG: 18 career starts, 1,066 total offensive snaps
- C: 4 career starts, 257 total offensive snaps
- RG: 2 career starts, 164 total offensive snaps
- RT: 1 career start, 71 total offensive snaps
He’s certainly a valuable player to have in the building and yet another Dan Morgan investment made this offseason that’s paying off in a big way for this team in 2025.
It’s also worth mentioning how much of a mauler Cade Mays was in Week 5 as well, despite having some rough PFF grades that don’t fully reflect the game he had. He’s been stepping up as well starting in place of Austin Corbett at center.
Carolina Panthers News
‘They gotta buckle up’ — Rico Dowdle is already sending a strong message to his former team after breakout Week 5 performance
He’s not holding back this week either.
