Healthy and hungry, Chuba Hubbard looks to lead Panthers’ ground game in 2026
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
After rushing for more than 2,000 total yards during his 2023 and 2024 seasons, Chuba Hubbard’s 134 carries for 511 yards in 2025 fell well short of what he had wanted.
Read more Deportation flight delays, ICE’s last-minute adds leave Haitian officials scrambling
Hubbard, who is slated as the Panthers’ 2026 starting running back, dealt with a lingering calf strain from a Week 4 matchup against the Patriots last September. It pushed him to second-string behind Rico Dowdle, limiting his carries and impact.
But, Hubbard is back.
“I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life,” he said Thursday, three days before the Panthers’ season opener against the Bears. “I worked really hard this offseason. Obviously I have a chip on my shoulder from last year.”
So much of the conversation surrounding the Panthers’ running back room has been about whether Jonathon Brooks would be able to suit up for Carolina’s week 1 matchup. As such, it’s easy to forget that the bulk of the Panthers’ run production should come from Hubbard. And if he can replicate what he did two and three seasons ago, the Panthers are in for a solid run game.
“At the end of the day, I want to be able to help my team win games,” Hubbard said. “I feel like I missed the mark last year.”
The 2026 season will come with a new role for Hubbard, who was named captain a week ago. But Hubbard insists that designation will not change how he approaches the game or his leadership.
“I always looked at myself as a leader before that, and I’m thankful that my team voted me as a captain,” he said. “Regardless if I got that C or not, I was gonna continue to be me, just like last year and the year before.”
Read more KJ Biermann’s Alleged Victim Tells Court She Is Being Threatened
Coming off last season’s injury, Hubbard was disappointed to suffer another one in training camp, this time a hamstring that caused him to miss all three preseason games in addition to Carolina’s joint practices with the Jaguars and Texans.
Feeling healthy now, Hubbard is taking his past adversity and converting it to fuel.
“I think that God puts me in positions to stay hungry and keep working hard,” Hubbard said. “There’s nothing wrong with having a chip on your shoulder. I like to think that I work best sometimes when it’s like that.”
As Hubbard has faced obstacles, he and the guy backing him up have been there for each other. Brooks, who tore his ACL in back-to-back seasons, has yet to have meaningful production for the Panthers.
Nobody gets it quite like Hubbard.
“The year before, and even this year, we worked side by side with each other all offseason,” Hubbard said. “He showed up with me, I challenged him, he challenged me. He let me push him, and it helped him get to the best spot he’s been in in a long time.”
With both running backs feeling the best they have, run production could open up opportunities for Bryce Young to have the season that proves he is Carolina’s franchise quarterback.
Read more Severe Charlotte storms, damaging winds possible Friday. Your weekend forecast.
