Carolina PanthersOur read
Written Oct 19, from his facts through last season
Chuba Hubbard has answered the only question that mattered, and he answered it fast. After a 2025 where his points a game fell from 15.97 to 8.36, he is back at 19.8 through four games of 2026, with five touchdowns and no missed weeks. The efficiency backs the scoring: +1.3 rushing yards over expected a carry, fifth among 36 backs with 25 or more tracked carries, and he is getting 30% of the team's red-zone carries and targets, up from a 13.9% red-zone share of his own touches a year ago that ranked 84th among 147 qualifying backs. That last number was the whole reason for the collapse. It has flipped.
The role is what we hoped for when we put him at RB26 overall with 143 projected points for the season, our 10.2 points a game over 14 expected games. He is listed first among Carolina backs, with AJ Dillon third and Trevor Etienne fourth behind him, and Dave Canales and Brad Idzik are both back calling the same offense. Inside the ten he takes 38% of the carries and targets, 19th among 65 backs with 20 or more carries and targets.
The caution is simple: he did this before, in 2024, then gave it all back in a season where his target share slid to 9.0%. Two healthy weeks do not settle that. What would settle it is the touchdowns and the red-zone volume still showing up week after week as 2026 rolls deeper into the season, not just in the first five weeks. Until then, start him every week and enjoy it.