Panthers' RB Chuba Hubbard — but that might actually be good news for Carolina’s offense

The Carolina Panthers' offense is slowly starting to come around under head coach Dave Canales.

Quarterback Bryce Young is finally starting to gain his confidence as a leader, pass catchers continue to be added around him, and the backfield is set to surprise a lot of people during the 2025 season.

Sticking with the latter, the running back position in Carolina got some overhaul this offseason when the front office signed Rico Dowdle and drafted Trevor Etienne. 

The moves weren't made to put some pressure on starting running back Chuba Hubbard, but more so to make the entire unit more well-rounded. But, in the case of Hubbard, that could still mean making some statistical sacrifices in 2025.

NFL analysts hint regression is coming for Chuba Hubbard

Throughout the week, A to Z Sports' analysts Destin Adams and Kyle Crabbs have been collaborating on hot takes for each team in the NFL. On Friday, the NFC South was the topic of discussion and both writers believe the Panthers' lead back will fail to reach a certain milestone for the second consecutive year.

I do think Hubbard will still have success in the red zone as he should be the go to back in that area, but I don't see him reaching 1,000 yards again this season. I honestly wouldn't be shocked if he falls short of 900 yards either. - Destin Adams

While both writers bought stock in this hot take, Crabbs added that the Panthers "would be wise to aspire not to run Hubbard into the ground."

Meaning that the potential regression for Hubbard's outlook could actually be a good thing for him and the Panthers' offense, which lines up with why the front office made the moves they did this offseason.

Just look at what head coach Dave Canales had to say about Hubbard and Dowdle working together to share the backfield workload back in April.

"It's just the continuity that we're afforded when you have two guys with the same type of style," Canales said. "I know some people try to have people that complement each other with different attributes. Man, if you got two war daddies like that who can go in there and keep that attitude and that toughness going for the group, I think it's really critical that you have."

It's a smart process that helps keep both backs productive and efficient over the course of a 17 game season. Keeping your best players healthy and avoiding any wear and tear matters even more for a team with playoff aspirations in 2025.

And just because Dowdle was added to the backfield doesn't mean both players are going to be restricted from lighting up the stat sheet in this offense.