Panthers RB Miles Sanders (finger) isn't listed on the final Week 1 injury report. He injured a finger in Wednesday's practice but was a full participant on Thursday and Friday. Sanders is not a Week 1 fantasy option but figures to siphon at least a handful of touches from lead back Chuba Hubbard.
Panthers RB Miles Sanders suffered a finger injury in Wednesday's practice, according to Steve Reed of The Associated Press. Carolina officially listed him as limited in the week's first practice report.
The Panthers won't have RB Jonathon Brooks (knee) for at least the first four games of the season. That'll leave the backfield to RBs Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders. HC Dave Canales said Monday that both guys will be involved.
Panthers RB Jonathon Brooks will stay on the PUP list to begin the season, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. That knocks the rookie out for at least the first four games of the season as he continues to work back from last November's ACL tear.
The Panthers have placed rookie RB Jonathon Brooks on the active/non-football injury list. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that it was an expected move, related to Brooks return from the November ACL tear that ended his final college season.
The Panthers are set to sign RB Rashaad Penny, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Penny is still rocking a career 5.6 yards-per-carry average. But he's suffered a multitude of injuries, most recently a fractured fibula in October 2022. He barely found any snaps on Philadelphia last year, finishing with just 11 carries for 33 yards. There's opportunity in Carolina, where Penny joins a backfield with rookie Jonathon Brooks, Chuba Hubbard, and Miles Sanders. But it'd be a surprise if the now-28-year-old Penny re-emerged as a fantasy asset.
Panthers HC Dave Canales talked up RB Jonathon Brooks' versatility in his post-draft press conference. "He's a bigger back. He's got range. There's so much that he brings from a versatility standpoint," Canales said. "That's probably the biggest thing that stood out. Vision, patience, contact balance, acceleration. He's got it all. He's the best back in this class and we're so fired up to be able to bring him in." Canales also talked about his system looking to flex RBs out wide and get them in space with the screen game. That's exactly what we saw from Canales' Bucs offense last year, with RB Rachaad White ranking top-9 among RBs in targets, catches, and receiving yards. Brooks flashed strong pass-catching skills in his 10 outings last season, averaging 28.6 receiving yards per game and 11.4 yards per catch. With RBs Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders as his only backfield competition, Brooks has a chance to capture a big role early in his rookie season. The only real roadblock is his recovery from his November ACL tear.
Panthers RB Jonathon Brooks confirmed on Friday night that he's on track to be ready for training camp after tearing his ACL in November. “I’m out there, I’m running, I’m about to start cutting," Brooks said. "So I’m progressing well. I’m right on track on where I need to be." Despite the knee injury, Brooks was the only RB in the class to get Round 2 capital. And he landed in a backfield with Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders as the competition for touches. The Panthers might slow-roll Brooks early this season. But it shouldn't take him long to emerge as the clear lead back. He boasts top-20 upside in redraft leagues and already looks like a top-12 dynasty RB.
The Panthers selected Texas RB Jonathon Brooks in Round 2 of the NFL Draft. Brooks spent just 10 games as Texas’ lead back and is coming off a November ACL tear. But there’s a reason the Panthers made him the No.1 RB off the board. Brooks averaged 114 rushing yards and 1.0 rushing TDs on 6.1 yards per carry across his 10 outings last year. He ranked top-12 among 157 qualifying RBs in Pro Football Focus rushing grade, missed tackles forced per attempt, and PFF Elusive Rating. Brooks was also a weapon as a receiver, averaging 2.5 catches and 29 receiving yards per game. He ranked 21st among 112 qualifying RBs in yards per route and 12th in PFF receiving grade. Flip on the tape and Brooks impresses with elite acceleration, sneaky elusiveness, and enough long speed to break big runs. He’s a natural pass-catcher with good hands and plenty of juice after the catch. The 6’0, 216-pounder certainly has three-down potential in the NFL. We’ll track his rehab from that torn ACL, but Brooks is on track to be medically cleared by the start of training camp (confirmed by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport). If healthy, Brooks should slot in as the RB1 ahead of Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders. There’s a top-15 ceiling here if the Panthers can get significantly better play out of Bryce Young.
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.
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