Chuba Hubbard Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Asked this week about the Panthers' RB depth chart, new OC Brad Idzik didn't name a starter. "I think that kinda sorts itself out ... and you let them compete right up until Game 1," he said. Idzik added that "we have a lot of good runners" -- so it's possible he's been accidentally watching 2023 film of the wrong team. Carolina, of course, watched Chuba Hubbard and his 3.8 yards per carry (plus 6.0 per catch) seize the backfield lead from Miles Sanders. That came after Sanders signed one of the market's biggest RB free-agent deals last offseason. Don't be surprised if the Panthers add a RB in the draft or another source. As it stands, Hubbard has to be the favorite for work over Sanders. But the latter has enjoyed the more productive career to date. Heading into just his age-27 season, Sanders is capable of rebounding at least ahead of Hubbard. Neither should excite you for fantasy right now. Best ball ADP positions Sanders (RB59, Round 17) as the better value than Hubbard (RB39, Round 11).

The Panthers are making a surprise choice in hiring former Buccaneers OC Dave Canales as HC, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Canales arrives after spending just one year with the Bucs. But that season seems to have revived QB Baker Mayfield's career. Overall, the Bucs ranked just 20th in points, 23rd in total yards, tied for 19th in yards per play, and 20th in offensive DVOA. Before that, Canales spent 13 years coaching offense in Seattle, including three years as WRs coach, five as QBs coach, and two as passing-game coordinator. Canales drew praise for his role in QB Geno Smith's 2022 breakout. His work with Smith and Mayfield almost certainly excited the Panthers, who likely envision Canales as the guy to help QB Bryce Young rebound from a troubling rookie season. Of course, Canales goes from QBs coach for Smith and OC for Mayfield to HC in Carolina. So be careful about assuming too much from his influence. We'll see who Canales brings in to fill out his coaching staff and what the Panthers can add to an offense that sported unimpressive talent in 2023 (and doesn't have a 2024 first-round pick). This seems like a positive move for Young's dynasty outlook, but temper your excitement.

Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard racked up 22 carries for 87 yards in the Week 15 win over the Falcons. That gives him a whopping 70 carries over the last three games, which Hubbard has parlayed into 278 yards and two TDs. Carolina has leaned heavily on the run under interim HC Chris Tabor -- and Hubbard has been the beneficiary. He's totaled just four catches on four targets over these last three games, which dings his value in full PPR leagues especially. But Hubbard is at least useable as a RB3 against the Packers' 21st-ranked RB defense. Week 17 brings a tougher spot vs. the Jaguars.

Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard carried 23 times in Sunday’s blowout loss to New Orleans. Carolina ran 79 plays, which helped Hubbard generate such a hefty workload. Once again, he played well ahead of Miles Sanders, who mixed in with 10 carries. A still-poor Carolina offense limited Hubbard to 3.8 YPC and stopped a 2-game scoring streak. Volume will keep him in the RB2/FLEX mix for the final few weeks.

Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard dominated backfield work in Week 13 vs. the Buccaneers, tallying 25 carries for 104 yards and 2 TDs. Miles Sanders registered just 8 carries for 23 yards on 31.9% of Carolina’s offensive snaps. Sanders had seen at least 50% of the RB carries the previous two weeks, but that shifted dramatically in the first game after Carolina fired HC Frank Reich and RBs coach Duce Staley, among others. Reich and Staley were outspoken supporters of Sanders after the Panthers signed him in free agency, but Hubbard has outperformed the import all season. Carolina's remaining schedule ranks sixth-toughest for RBs per our adjusted fantasy points allowed, which hurts. But Hubbard will be worth RB2 consideration if he continues to control the backfield the way he did against the Bucs. Sanders can be dropped in most fantasy leagues, if you see something more interesting on the waiver wire.

The Panthers fired HC Frank Reich. He didn't even make it a full season in Carolina, going 1-10 in his 11 games. An offensive-minded coach, Reich's Panthers offense sits 30th in yards per game, 29th in points per game, and 31st in offensive DVOA. A poor group of skill-position players didn't help the cause, but Reich did very little to elevate the offense or rookie QB Bryce Young. Special teams coordinator Chris Tabor will finish out the season as interim HC, while OC Thomas Brown takes back over as play-caller. We'll see if the moves lead to any changes in player usage, but don't expect the offense to be noticeably better.

The Panthers' backfield returned to a proper committee in Week 11 vs. the Cowboys. RB Miles Sanders handled a team-leading 11 carries for 50 rushing yards on a 45.7% snap share, all highs since Week 4 vs. the Vikings. His teammate Chuba Hubbard stayed active in the contest, tallying 65 total yards on 12 touches, but saw his lowest share of the RB carries (52.3%) over his last four games. Perhaps this is the beginning of Sanders returning to good health after being marred by groin and shoulder injuries to open 2023. Hubbard's rise in the first place can be primarily attributed to simply being the healthier of the two for a while, so it'll be worth monitoring this usage next week vs. the Titans. For now, fantasy managers should see if Sanders was dropped to the waiver wire. He might be worth scooping.

Week 10’s showdown vs. the Bears showed fantasy managers that Panthers RB Miles Sanders is probably safe to drop onto the waiver wire in shallow leagues. The veteran accumulated 10 total yards on 4 touches. Sanders played on just 38.3% of the Panthers’ offense snaps, actually lost yardage as a runner (2 carries, -5 yards), and generally just hasn’t been helpful since Week 3. Fellow RB Chuba Hubbard didn’t perform much better in the contest (11 touches, 39 total yards), though he continues to win the touch battle in this backfield. Hubbard will be the preferred runner in Carolina again in Week 11. However, he’ll have a tough time posting more than flex-level numbers against a Cowboys’ defense that ranks as the seventh-toughest RB matchup per our adjusted fantasy points allowed.

Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard out-touched teammate Miles Sanders 17 to 2 in Week 8 vs. the Texans. The veteran Sanders received 2 carries in the contest, only to be shut out completely in the fantasy box score. Hubbard, on the other hand, tallied 54 total yards on Sunday. This outcome is a bit of a surprise. While Sanders has dealt with injuries to his groin and shoulder early in 2023, it was reasonable to anticipate he’d be more involved coming off of the Panthers’ bye week presumably healthy. For now, it’s safe to operate with the understanding Hubbard will lead the way in Week 9 vs. the Colts.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) put in a full week of practice and isn’t listed on the final injury report for Sunday’s game vs. the Texans. We don’t need to worry about Sanders’ health at this point, but his workload is uncertain. RB Chuba Hubbard has simply been the more effective player this season. We’re projecting Sanders to lead a fairly evenly split backfield this week, largely because Carolina gave him $13 million guaranteed). But neither Panther is better than a RB3.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. That puts him on track to play vs. the Texans this weekend. RB Chuba Hubbard had a nice game in Sanders' absence back in Week 6 and has been the more effective RB in general so far this season. But we're projecting Sanders to step back in as Carolina's lead back at least for Week 8.

Panthers HC Frank Reich told his players Monday that he's handing over play-calling duties to OC Thomas Brown, NFL Network reports. The move comes as Carolina heads into a Week 7 bye. That should help with the transition, which has been rumored to be on the way since before this season started. Brown was a trendy head-coaching candidate last offseason but is in his first year as an NFL OC. So it's tough to know what to expect here. Brown did spend his first three NFL coaching seasons on Sean McVay's offensive staff, though. And it's hard to imagine the Panthers getting much less efficient on offense. They sit third-worst so far at 4.4 yards per play and third-worst in net yards per pass attempt. We'll see whether the switch produces any noticeable boost to offensive efficiency and/or fantasy upside.

Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard handled 19 of 25 team RB attempts in a Week 6 loss at Miami. He scored once on the ground but surprisingly added only 1 catch on 1 target. Hubbard’s score came on Carolina’s first possession, where he found daylight on a 6-yard run up the gut. Miles Sanders should return following a Week 7 bye, but Hubbard likely earned a bigger role going forward. Carolina squares off with the Texans in Week 8.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) is out for Sunday's game vs. the Dolphins. He'd been battling a bum groin and then picked up a shoulder injury last week. Sanders gets a Week 7 bye to heal up. His absence this weekend leaves Chuba Hubbard as Carolina's lead back. Sanders and Hubbard have combined to average 19.2 carries and 7.6 targets per game this season. We're certainly not expecting Hubbard to soak up all of that. The Panthers also have RB Raheem Blackshear and could use WR Laviska Shenault in the running game. But Hubbard should get enough work to be a decent RB2 play in fantasy lineups.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) missed practice again on Thursday. He's in real danger of missing this weekend's game vs. the Dolphins. Sanders' absence would leave Chuba Hubbard as Carolina's lead back -- and a lower-end, volume-based fantasy starter. Check back tomorrow for another update on Sanders.

Panthers HC Frank Reich told reporters Wednesday that RB Miles Sanders won't be practicing Wednesday because he "came out of the game with a little something" in his shoulder, according to Darin Gantt of the team website. Assuming the team didn't find buried treasure in that joint, Sanders is adding some sort of shoulder injury to a groin issue that has bothered him on several occasions already this year. We'll see how he progresses through the practice week, but Chuba Hubbard could be in for another solid share of backfield work in Week 6. He's worth holding -- or a modest waiver buy -- this week. No Panthers RB will be exciting against the Dolphins, however.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders lost a fumble and took a backseat to teammate Chuba Hubbard in Week 5’s loss vs. the Lions. The veteran still has a groin injury that he's working through, so it makes sense that Carolina spread the wealth around. Sanders only logged 7 carries for 32 yards, though Hubbard’s 9 attempts for 35 yards weren’t much better. Neither RB was effective in the contest against the Lions’ stout run D. It also didn’t help matters that WR Laviska Shenault Jr. siphoned off 5 carries, but sometimes weird stuff happens. It’s possible both Sanders and Hubbard could be viable deeper league options in a much better matchup vs. the Dolphins in Week 6.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (groin) is not listed on the final Week 5 injury report. He practiced all week, including a full workout on Friday. It's an upgrade over last week, when Sanders got in just two limited practices and was listed as questionable. We expect Sanders to re-take the backfield lead vs. the Lions this weekend after being out-snapped by RB Chuba Hubbard last week.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders saw his playing time limited in Sunday's loss to Minnesota. He played six fewer snaps than Chuba Hubbard and trailed his teammate in routes and carries. Sanders gained just 19 yards on his 13 rushes (1.5 per carry). He caught all 3 targets but managed only 13 yards. Hubbard ran for 41 yards on 14 rushes (2.9 per carry) and caught both of his targets for 12 yards. Sanders didn't practice much leading up to the game, thanks to a groin injury that rendered him questionable. We'll see if HC Frank Reich signals any role shift or improvement in Sanders' injury ahead of a Week 5 visit to Detroit.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (groin) is listed as questionable for this weekend's game vs. the Vikings. He went from limited practices on Wednesday and Thursday to no practice on Friday, which is obviously worrisome. But HC Frank Reich said Friday that he's "optimistic" that Sanders will be able to play this weekend. We'll look for further updates on the situation and get Carolina's inactives around 11:30 am ET on Sunday. Chuba Hubbard would step in as Carolina's lead back if Sanders is out.