Carolina Panthers RB rotation with Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard isn't working

For the second straight week, Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales decided to stick with his running back rotation of Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle with each running back alternating series throughout the game. The numbers show that it isn’t working and has halted the production of Dowdle.

After rushing for 206 yards on 23 carries against the Miami Dolphins in Week 5 and totaling 239 yards from scrimmage against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 6, Dowdle has been forced into splitting time with Hubbard after Hubbard’s return from a calf injury that kept him out against the Dolphins and Cowboys. Dowdle averaged 9.0 yards per carry against Miami, while averaging 6.1 yards per carry against Dallas.

In the two games since, Dowdle carried the ball 17 times for 79 yards against the New York Jets (4.6 yards per carry) in a 13-6 win in Week 7 but only had eight carries for 54 yards against the 40-9 loss to the Buffalo Bills (6.8 yards per carry.) In those same contests, Hubbard ran for 31 yards on 14 carries (2.2 yards per attempt) against the Jets, and 12 carries for 34 yards (2.8 yards per carry) and one touchdown against Buffalo.

The math is simple: Dowdle has rushed for 133 yards on 25 carries (5.32 yards per carry), while Hubbard has just 65 yards on 26 carries (2.5 yards per carry). The total rushes are essentially equal, but Dowdle has double the production. 5.32 > 2.5.

I'm a big believer in Chuba Hubbard, but this run game timeshare just isn't working for either guy.

You're stifling either Dowdle's big play ability or Hubbard's ability to rev up momentum.
— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) October 26, 2025

What’s perplexing is the fact that Rico Dowdle saw only one four offensive plays in the second half against Buffalo, with three of those plays coming with less than five minutes to play in the game, getting one meaningless carry.

Canales was adamant postgame about that he was going to stick with the plan, but was looking for overall better execution, and how it was the passing game that let the offense down today because that’s where the turnovers started to mount.

But the rotation isn’t working, and Canales is single-handedly responsible for not riding the white hot Dowdle, essentially dousing his most productive player with cold water.

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