CHARLOTTE — Panthers running back Jonathon Brooks is finally on the active roster, and one step closer to making his NFL debut.

The Panthers activated the second-round rookie from the reserve/non-football injury list Wednesday after he's practiced for three weeks in his return from last November's ACL injury. That puts him in line to get his first carry as a pro on another continent Sunday against the Giants in Munich. (They also activated sixth-round defensive tackle Jaden Crumedy from IR on Wednesday.)

Of course, Panthers head coach Dave Canales wasn't going to specify how much of a role he'd have, or even whether he'd be active this week, since the Panthers have taken it slow with Brooks' rehab all year, and they also have a pretty good starting running back in Chuba Hubbard.

But Brooks made it clear Wednesday that whatever he gets, he'll be grateful and ready for.

"I mean, I feel like whatever is thrown at me, I'm going to handle it," Brooks said. "Whether that's a good amount of plays, whether it's not as many, I'm going to give my best effort on each play and just try to be a good teammate and help the team as best as I can."

There hasn't been a lot of work for the non-Hubbard backs here, as Miles Sanders only has 36 attempts in nine games, and no other non-quarterback on the roster has more than five. Then again, they drafted Brooks for a reason, as he flashed explosive ability in college, with 187 carries for 1,139 yards (6.1 yards per attempt) and 10 touchdowns in 11 games for Texas.

And Hubbard has seen that speed already,

"JB is, I think I said it time and time again, a special talent and also a great guy," Hubbard said. "Me and him have created a great friendship and I'm looking forward to getting on the field. He's looking really good so far."

Either way, Brooks is looking forward to the opportunity to finally make his debut, and if it's a new environment like Munich, all the better.

"It's truly a blessing," Brooks said. "I've fought my way hard through rehab and just mentally and physically, just getting back to this point, feeling 100 percent being able to be ready to be back on the field.

Young to start again this week

Bryce Young will get his third straight start this week, leading the Panthers against the Giants. The decision comes after Young led a game winning touchdown drive on Sunday, giving the Panthers their second win of the season.

"This is about the progress from one week to the next," Canales explained Wednesday after announcing the decision. "And then I preach finish. I talk about finish all the time, you know, that's finish everything, finish plays, drives, quarters, halves, finish games.

"He did a fantastic job of finishing that game the right way, finding a way to win and really battling that way, so I was really proud of Bryce for that. Just took all the information in and wanted to give him another opportunity to get out there. and face the Giants this week in Germany."

It's an opportunity that the second-year passer doesn't take lightly. After a quarterback change previously in the season, Young cherishes every snap.

"Just grateful for the reps I'm able to get, just the experience of being out there in this system," Young said this week. "Just the more I'm able to experience stuff, I feel more and more comfortable. I think that's stuff we continue to grow and build off of."

As a former No. 1 overall pick, Young was in a unique situation with all the expectations and little of the grace. During the five games Andy Dalton started, before suffering a sprained thumb, Young used that time to lock in on the position.

"Just to keep working tto stay ready," Young said of advice he was offered. "And just to be engaged and that was something that I definitely pride myself in. I love the game. I have a ton of respect for the game. So, I definitely, again, no matter what my circumstances has been, I've wanted to always treat the preparation the same."

Starting this week means facing off against Giants edge rusher and former teammate Brian Burns. While Young had the hedge of protection when facing Burns in practice in Charlotte (aka, a non-contact jersey) he won't be afforded the same bubble on Sunday.

"Yeah, great player, tremendous respect for him as a player. Obviously know him personally from here and great dude. But on the field, know the player he is. For us, we know it's going to take our best, we know the challenge that it presents. So, we have to do everything we can throughout the week to prepare and we know that it's a really good defense around him."

Burns has five sacks thus far this season.

Jordan Matthews is going back to his WR roots this weekend

On paper, it seems as if the Panthers receiving corps is thin at the time. Diontae Johnson and Jonathan Mingo were traded in the past week, and Adam Thielen is still on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. That leaves rookies Xavier Legette and Jalen Coker to handle the bulk of the duties, along with David Moore and Deven Thompkins, the latter of whom will presumably be a practice squad elevation.

But the Panthers have a versatile not-so-secret weapon in veteran tight end Jordan Matthews. For years, the Vanderbilt product was a wide receiver, before switching to tight end in 2021. His seven years as a pure receiver though give the Panthers a well on which to draw.

"I got a lot of confidence in Jordan and we're going to count on him to help us out too in that way," Canales said Wednesday. "That's the hope he'll be able to do a little bit of both. So, really cool to just kind of have some of those versatile players like Brady Christensen, like Jordan who can give us some flexibility."

For Matthews, that means a crash course back into what it takes to be a receiver. He asked for receiver specific film this week to study, looking a lot back on Larry Fitzgerald from 2015 and 2016. But he also watched some of his own old film, particularly from his time with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2018.

"That was a tough year because they won the Super Bowl the year before. A ton of pressure on me because when you leave and you've had success, but then they go accomplish that, you feel like, well, if we aren't good this year, they're going to say, is it because of you," laughed Matthews.

"So, it was a lot of pressure, but I was able to hone in on my craft and really go out there and put some good film out there. And that's what kind of got me to the Niners. So I'll probably pull up some of that old film just to remind myself like, no, you do this and you can go out there and have fun, run fast and make plays when I put the work in."