Panthers’ matchup vs. Bills puts Buffalo’s glaring weakness right into the wheelhouse of Carolina’s biggest strength
Regardless of who starts at QB, Carolina will have a favorable matchup on offense in Week 8.
The Carolina Panthers head into Week 8 with a lot of questions at the quarterback position following a right ankle injury to starting quarterback Bryce Young, but the offense identity isn’t expected to change no matter who lines up under center on Sunday.
“We’ll look at all that and see what the best version of us is. But right now, it’s running the football, and Andy [Dalton] can handle all those things,” head coach Dave Canales explained.
So, it’s clear leaning into the run game will be a priority again for this team in Week 8, regardless of who’s playing quarterback, and that plan plays right into Carolina’s hands against the Buffalo Bills.
Chuba Hubbard and Rico Dowdle set up for ideal matchup in Week 8
The Panthers reintroduced the two-back set in Week 7 against the New York Jets with Chuba Hubbard back in the lineup splitting carries with Rico Dowdle. Looking ahead to Sunday, the Panthers’ two backs will be facing a favorable matchup.
Seven weeks into the season, only the Miami Dolphins (159.3) have allowed more rushing yards per game than the Buffalo Bills (156.3). In Buffalo’s last game, the Bills faced a two-back offense against the Atlanta Falcons with Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier combining for 202 yards and two touchdowns on 29 attempts.
The last time the Panthers faced a matchup this favorable for the run game was actually against the Dolphins in Week 5, when Dowdle totaled 206 yards on the ground. But, things will of course look a little different for Carolina on Sunday than it did in Week 5.
The workload between Hubbard and Dowdle was a heavily discussed topic last week and the Panthers looked around the league at other teams that deploy a successful two-back approach. Last Sunday, the plan was much of the same from earlier in the season with Hubbard getting the start and then rotating the two backs every other drive.
“It just came out like we thought. We just switched some series and let those guys go out there and play some football for us,” Canales said. “So I just thought it was a good day, both guys running physically, running aggressive, and it ended up paying off for us.”
Dowdle was a much more efficient runner, averaging 4.6 yards per carry. Hubbard, while not as efficient on the ground, make a big play as a receiver on a 26-yard screen pass. Despite the differences on the ground, Canales still plans to lean into a similar approach moving forward.
“It felt great. It felt great for me to know whoever I was calling the run for, I expect great execution out of these guys,” Canales added. “Chuba even had a couple of excellent runs on the perimeter with screens and bit out some pretty good yards in that regard too.”
“We were able to find some yards in different ways, some screens, some different things like that, and then as (the Jets) were trying to make things difficult, we were able to get the ball on the edge a couple of times with Rico in there.”
This couldn’t be a more favorable matchup for the Panthers’ offense considering the situation at the quarterback position. But, defensively, the unit will have to step up in a big way to limit the reigning MVP in Josh Allen to keep the game close and help make the run game as dangerous as possible.
Carolina Panthers News
Dave Canales offers telling comments on Bryce Young’s injury and overall QB room setting up an interesting week for the Panthers
Bryce Young will be day-to-day with an ankle injury going into Week 8.
