Who Should I Start? Chuba Hubbard or Jaxon Smith-Njigba

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.

Saturday, August 16, 10:46 AM

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba caught one pass for seven yards in Friday's preseason win over the Kansas City Chiefs. The Seahawks' starting offense got its first run of the preseason on the team's opening drive. Smith-Njigba was lined up all over the field and caught his lone pass out of the backfield. It appears that offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak's play-calling will be more creative than what the Seahawks had in 2024. With Smith-Njigba now entrenched as Seattle's No. 1 wide receiver, it was encouraging to see him moved around the field to create preferred matchups and manufacture touches. While JSN's time on the field on Friday was short, fantasy managers can come away from this game with more confidence to draft him.