The Panthers’ run game ended the 2025 regular season with a thud. And as head coach Dave Canales and offensive coordinator Brad Idzik prepare for their first playoff game in Carolina, they’ll need to revive what was a once-powerful backfield to have any sort of success in the postseason.
Perhaps a change of pace might help. Not a reconfiguration of the two-back tandem of Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard, but a new wrinkle with some fresh legs to account for the quality of production (or lack thereof) on the ground.
As Idzik noted twice during his Wednesday call with media, while discussing shakeups with the receiver and offensive line depth charts, the NFL is a “production business.” And during the team’s final four games of the regular season, Dowdle and Hubbard averaged a combined 3.4 yards per carry (67 combined runs for 225 yards and a touchdown). Rookie Trevor Etienne, a fourth-round pick, never factored into that math, because he didn’t receive a tote during the final month of the season.
Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle loses control of the ball as he is tackled by Seattle Seahawks safety D’Anthony Bell during a Dec. 28, 2025 game at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. Carolina lost 27-10. TRACY KIMBALL [email protected]
To beat the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round on Saturday (4:30 p.m. on FOX), the Panthers might need to inject Etienne into the run game plan to provide a boost at Bank of America Stadium.
“I think we’re always exploring those things,” Idizk said. “The run game, especially when you get to the latter half of the season, you want fresh legs. So there’s a complement there, too, of letting a guy get in his groove and get a handful of carries. I think Chuba and Rico would both say that they want every carry in every game to get a feel for it and play physical. But we also know when we have a stable of backs, and a guy like Trevor who’s played good football for us, you want to try to look to get them touches.”
Etienne hasn’t touched the ball on offense since the last time the Rams came to town in Week 13. During that late-November matchup, the rookie caught a pass for a 4-yard gain.
He finished the season with 20 carries for 94 yards (4.7 yards per carry) and three catches for 13 yards (4.3 yards per catch), while serving as the primary returner on kickoffs and punts.
“Being the third back, having (Etienne) on special teams is a great opportunity for us to keep him engaged in a game,” Idzik said. “And the flow of the game and the physicality and the aggressiveness. So I know if his number was called, he’s very engaged in the game because he’s returning all the kicks and the punts. So that, for us, is a blessing to have him back there as a returner, making sure that he’s not just coming off cold legs if he was to have his number called over the course of a game.”
Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle, center, carries the ball before being tackled as Seattle Seahawks Ty Okada (39) and Drake Thomas, right, apply pressure during their Dec. 28, 2025 game at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. TRACY KIMBALL [email protected]
Meanwhile, Dowdle and Hubbard have ebbed and flowed throughout the season, dealing with injuries, uneven play and inconsistent blocking performances from the offensive line.
Dowdle finished his first season in Carolina with 1,076 rushing yards (three yards shy of his career-high performance in Dallas last year) and a career-high six rushing touchdowns. But he produced just 341 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns during the final eight games of the season.
Hubbard had a major setback campaign. He went from producing a career-high 1,195 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in 2024 to collecting 511 rushing yards and a touchdown in 2025. Hubbard’s production was all over the place while he was dealing with a calf injury throughout the first half of the season, which eventually led to Dowdle taking over his role as a starter. Since recovering from the injury, Hubbard has been featured in a timeshare with Dowdle, with neither really surging in the production department.
Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard carries the ball against Rams defenders Nate Landman (53) and Jared Verse Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. TRACY KIMBALL [email protected]
While Hubbard had his best game of the season against the Rams with 83 rushing yards, there’s still reason to believe that the running back rotation could use some new energy.
The Panthers aren’t going to switch up their blocking scheme in one week. They aren’t going to magically become a dominant run game again — with or without Pro Bowl right guard Robert Hunt (biceps). So, utilizing a new running back in the backfield could be the right ingredient for a spark of success.
Etienne knows the scheme, and he’s stood and watched the standard all year long. He’s also been harder to prepare for because of his lack of regular-season touches.
“Runners are different, obviously,” Idzik said. “They prefer different schemes. They hit lanes a little bit different. We try to be as consistent as possible in the core runs that we have, just getting back to our fundamentals, what we’re stressing, so it feels the same for the O-line.”
“Same goes with protection,” Idzik added. “Guy’s eyes. Rico’s done a great job of progressing through the year. Chuba’s been phenomenal in protection for us. Trevor’s learning from those two guys what it looks like to stand under there in third down and communicate. So there’s a trust involved, but there’s also an understanding of, ‘Hey, when one guy’s in the game, you might have a couple of different style of runs called to cater to his stuff, to cater to what he likes, what he’s comfortable with.’”
Carolina Panthers running back Trevor Etienne carries the ball as Seattle Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight follows during their game on Dec. 28, 2025, at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. TRACY KIMBALL [email protected]
The Panthers were smitten with Etienne in this past year’s draft because of his versatility in the backfield. While his return skills have matured throughout the year, the brass — namely Canales and GM Dan Morgan — didn’t select him in the early fourth round for his special teams chops.
If the Panthers want to open up their offense, namely the run game, they might need to switch things up. The accolades and stats don’t matter anymore for Hubbard and Dowdle — this is the playoffs.
And if a little flash needs to be added to the operation to get the better of the Rams, Canales and Idzik should let it rip with the youngest member of the backfield.
This story was originally published January 7, 2026 at 11:36 AM.
Mike Kaye
The Charlotte Observer
Mike Kaye writes about the Carolina Panthers for The Charlotte Observer. He also co-hosts “Processing Blue: A Panthers Podcast” for The Observer. Kaye’s work in columns/analysis and sports feature writing has been honored by the North Carolina Press Association (NCPA). His reporting has also received recognition from the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE).Kaye previously covered the entire NFL for Pro Football Network, the Philadelphia Eagles for NJ Advance Media and the Jacksonville Jaguars for First Coast News. Support my work with a digital subscription
