The Carolina Panthers have a major question mark at running back with Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard. On Sunday morning, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler provided some clarity on the situation.
Panthers' Rico Dowdle-Chuba Hubbard situation gets some clarity from ESPN insider originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The biggest question of the week for the Carolina Panthers ahead of the Week 7 game against the New York Jets has been centered around running backs Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard.
Hubbard missed the last two games due to a calf injury, but he's back and healthy for the Week 7 contest on Sunday. However, Dowdle went nuclear during Hubbard's absence and that has led to calls for Dowdle to take over the starting job.
Unfortunately, head coach Dave Canales provided zero clarity on the situation during the week, but we did get an update from ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
According to Fowler, the Panthers are expected to have their two backs split work at the start of the game and will make changes based on game flow from there.
"For Carolina, expecting backs Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard to trade series early, with the flexibility to change based on flow of the game. Gives Panthers offense the chance to adjust and keep both players fresh," Fowler wrote.
That doesn't help fantasy owners much, so starting either one remains a bit of a roll of the dice. There is a chance both players will get enough work to be relevant, though, if the Panthers stake themselves to a lead over the abysmal Jets, which is possible.
We would bet that the Panthers will have Hubbard and Dowdle splitting work evenly early on, as Fowler says, but the team will ride the hot hand after that.
Based on what we've seen over the last two games, there's a good chance Dowdle will be the hotter hand.
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