Who Should I Start? Nick Chubb or Rico Dowdle

Tuesday, September 16, 1:02 AM

Houston Texans running back Nick Chubb rushes for 43 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown while adding two receptions for 29 yards. Chubb started the game looking good with an explosive gain for 27 yards on a screen pass. He was mostly inefficient on the ground against a stingy Tampa Bay front with Vita Vea and company. Outside of his 25-yard touchdown run, Chubb rushed for only 18 yards on 11 of his other carries. The 29-year-old looks to be the main back in Houston with Joe Mixon out of the picture for the foreseeable future. He handled 12 of the 15 running back carries while playing 52% of the snaps. There may not be a ton of upside with Chubb moving forward with a poor offensive line and offensive environment, but Chubb is a freak athlete and a time great running back who could still have something left. He looks like he will continue to get volume, and if C.J. Stroud and the Texans offense can find a groove, then he could be valuable. For now, he'll project as a touchdown-dependent RB3.

Saturday, August 9, 4:08 PM

Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle showed a glimpse of his potential as a pass-catching threat in the team's preseason debut against the Cleveland Browns, recording one reception for 20 yards to go along with two rushes for seven yards. The 27-year-old running back is entering his sixth season in the NFL after spending his entire career with the Dallas Cowboys, which was riddled with injuries. Dowdle is clearly behind Chuba Hubbard on the depth chart, but could carve out a role in the Panthers' receiving or two-minute offense in 2025. Coming off an underwhelming 2024 season in Dallas, where high hopes for the lead back role didn't materialize (235-1,079-2 on the ground, 39-249-3 in the air), a move to a new location and a backup role could take some pressure off Dowdle and allow him to grow into his potential. Rotoballer currently projects him as RB55, but Dowdle could be a sneaky stash if anything happens to Hubbard throughout the season.