Why would the Carolina Panthers do this?
The Carolina Panthers just completed a 2025 NFL campaign in which they created a backfield controversy between Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle.
Not that the two running backs were at odds, but it was pretty clear that the Panthers didn't really have a true No. 1 back this past season.
Considering Carolina signed Hubbard to a four-year, $33 million extension in November 2024, you would think the Panthers would be prioritizing him, but because Dowdle played so well when Hubbard was injured during the first half of 2025, the former kind of, sort of stole Hubbard's job the rest of the way.
Dowdle is now headed toward free agency and has made it pretty clear that he wants a greater opportunity elsewhere, which means that Hubbard will return to his role as the unquestioned featured back in 2026 ... right?
Well, Bleacher Report's Moe Moton is doing his best to create another backfield conundrum, naming Carolina as one of the top landing spots for Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker this offseason.
Kenneth Walker. Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images."Walker can provide what Dowdle brought to the Panthers' ground game with strong ball security," Moton wrote. "He's only fumbled three times in his career and didn't lose any of them."
Moton noted how much Hubbard regressed this past year, which is fair. After all, the 26-year-old rushed for just 511 yards and a touchdown on 3.8 yards per carry. But he also dealt with a nagging calf issue early in the season.
Hubbard is just two campaigns removed from racking up 1,195 yards and 10 scores while averaging 4.8 yards per attempt, so unless Carolina now thinks that was some sort of outlier, you have to think the Oklahoma State product will be getting the bulk of the carries again next fall.
Walker, meanwhile, just carried the ball 27 times for 135 yards during the Seattle Seahawks' Super Bowl win over the New England Patriots. On the season overall, he registered 1,027 yards and five touchdowns while tallying 4.6 yards per tote.
If the Panthers did make a push for Walker, it would almost surely mean they would be open to trading Hubbard, who is under contract through 2028 and carries just a $7.5 million cap hit for next season.
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