Who Should I Start? Chuba Hubbard or Bucky Irving

Saturday, August 9, 3:50 PM

Carolina Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard opened the preseason with three rushes for 10 yards in Friday's 30-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns. While his stats were light, the 26-year-old is expected to resume his role as the team's lead back after an impressive 2024 campaign. Last year, Hubbard emerged as a bell-cow, capitalizing on injuries to Miles Sanders and Jonathon Brooks (knee) to post a stat line of 250 rushes for 1,195 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground, along with 43 receptions for 171 yards and one touchdown through the air in 15 games. He signed a four-year, $33.2 million contract extension in the middle of the season. RotoBaller projects Hubbard as RB17 heading into the regular season, reflecting his expected workload as the top option in the Carolina backfield and a steady, high-end RB2.

Sunday, August 17, 9:19 AM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving played the first three offensive drives during Saturday's preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Irving was one of the few offensive skill-position players to actually take the field on Saturday. The 22-year-old didn't have a ton of success as he rushed eight times for 12 yards on the ground. However, Irving made up for it with a 15-yard touchdown grab from Teddy Bridgewater. Irving is penciled in as the primary back in Tampa Bay with Rachaad White mixing in for carries as well.