One of the problems with the Carolina Panthers during the regular season was its inability to play consistent offense. Injuries played a role, but head coach Dave Canales struggled to decide whether to ride the hot hand at running back or split the backfield between Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle.
Over the course of the season, Dowdle had much better stats than Hubbard. He played in all 17 games and had 1,076 rushing yards with six touchdowns, while Hubbard had 511 yards and a touchdown in 15 games. Still, Canales continued to give Hubbard work, usually before Dowdle in games.
This storyline continued in the first half of Saturday’s wild-card playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams. Hubbard saw a lot of early work and scored a touchdown, but it made many wonder where the productive 1,000-yard running back Dowdle was.
Here is more on the Panthers’ early running back usage against the Rams in Wild Card weekend.
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SN’s expert predictions for NFL playoffs, Super Bowl 60Full NFL playoff scheduleUpdated NFL playoff bracketWild-card picks, predictionsNFL playoff power rankings, 1-14Is Rico Dowdle injuredNo. Dowdle doesn’t appear to be hurt and has played in the game. The Panthers have been alternating their running backs with Hubbard being the heavy hand early.
Is Rico Dowdle playing today? Yes. Dowdle has seen a few snaps in the first half, but the running back work is being dominated by Hubbard. When both running backs are healthy, they are known to split carries. When Carolina played Los Angeles earlier in the regular season, Dowdle had 18 carries while Hubbard had 17. Both had two targets and two receptions in the game.
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Ranking all 14 QBs in playoff, from best to worstWild-card picks, predictions against the spreadHow 2026 NFL playoff format worksRico Dowdle stats vs. RamsHere is a look at Dowdle’s first-half stats against the Rams.
Carries: 4Rushing Yards: 9Rushing TDs: 0Targets: 1Receptions: 0Receiving Yards: 0Receiving TDs: 0Chuba Hubbard stats vs. RamsHere is a look at Hubbard’s first-half stats against the Rams.
Carries: 4Rushing Yards: 17Rushing TDs: 1Targets: 2Receptions: 1Receiving Yards: 6Receiving TDs: 0Hubbard did punch in Carolina’s first touchdown of the game.
— NFL (@NFL) January 10, 2026
