Who Should I Start? Chuba Hubbard or Chase Brown

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.

Monday, August 4, 1:50 PM

Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown is expected to see an uptick in his passing-game numbers in 2025 after he caught 14 passes for 156 yards a year ago, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Brown has worked to improve his receiving abilities, and head coach Zac Taylor thinks it can be a strength for him. Despite the fact that the Bengals have studs in the passing game with receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and tight end Mike Gesicki, the expectation is that Brown "will serve as a safety valve in the screen game when defenses try to take away Chase or Higgins." The 25-year-old took over the backfield from Zack Moss (no longer on the team) last year and came 10 yards shy of reaching the 1,000-yard rushing mark while adding 11 total touchdowns in 16 games (10 starts). Brown is the focal point of one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL, making him a low-end RB1 target.