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It may have been on one player, but the Carolina Panthers spent pretty big on the running back position this offseason. Nonetheless, that still didn’t inspire much of an upgrade to their room.
Gordon McGuinness of Pro Football Focus recently ranked each team’s backfield unit—and the Panthers, who made a notable addition in Miles Sanders, stacked up at No. 28. McGuinness writes:
Miles Sanders set career highs with a 79.3 PFF rushing grade on 294 carries and 1,419 rushing yards in the regular season and playoffs for the Philadelphia Eagles a year ago. He figures to be the Panthers featured player at the position with D’Onta Foreman now with the Bears after a single season with the Panthers. Third-year player Chuba Hubbard also set a career-high with an 81.8 PFF rushing grade last season and should retain his backup role.
Sanders, who also rushed for a career-high 11 touchdowns in 2022, inked a four-year, $25.4 million pact with Carolina this spring. As opposed to the very (bitter) end of his career in Philly, he is expected to be the three-down back head coach Frank Reich is looking for.
Behind him will likely be Hubbard, who may be a bit overlooked. The former fourth-round pick, per NFL’s Next Gen Stats, was actually the most efficient rusher in the league this past season and spent the least amount of time—on average—behind the line scrimmage.
But until the two can do it again, and they may in 2023, there’s a long way to go on the list.
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