Brooks (groin) practicing again on Friday

Hubbard’s successes on the ground allowed the Panthers to remain balanced on a night they were without two of their top three wide receivers due to the absences of Jalen Coker and Xavier Legette, cashing in on two scores from 15 and two yards out. Hubbard appears to be locked into an RB1 workload in the absence of Jonathan Brooks, who will be out for 6-8 weeks after undergoing core muscle surgery. His 26 opportunities dwarfed the six of current backup AJ Dillon, the latter of whom gained just seven total yards on six touches. Fantasy managers can start Hubbard with confidence when the team returns from their bye to face the Eagles in Week 6.

With Jonathon Brooks on injured reserve, Hubbard’s 23 touches were nine more than he handled in Week 2, and 10 more than Week 1. Although he ceded a smattering of snaps to new backup AJ Dillon, he was a near every-down player in this road loss. Hubbard lacks high-end fantasy upside, but his floor right now is very much that of a locked-in RB2. That will be especially true for matchups like next week’s date with the defensively-challenged Lions.

Carolina is in need of some backfield reinforcements after losing Jonathon Brooks to a core injury that will leave him sidelined for at least six weeks. AJ Dillon is set to fill in for Brooks while Chub Hubbard presumably continues as the team’s lead back. Ekeler, 31, who hasn’t played since injuring his Achilles last September, could be an emergency running back if Hubbard or Dillon go down with injuries in the coming weeks. First he’ll need to make the squad.

Brooks will be sidelined for at least six weeks. It opens the door for Chuba Hubbard to dominate the Carolina backfield for the next month and a half, with AJ Dillon chipping in as a breather back. Through two game Hubbard leads the Panthers backfield with 22 rushes for 102 yards. He’s run a route on 50 percent of the team’s drop backs and have five targets. The Panthers, meanwhile, have the second highest pass rate over expected through Week 2. Hubbard will be a locked-in top-20 option going forward. Dillon can be stashed in case Hubbard gets dinged up while Brooks is recovering.

He’s undergoing tests to determine the severity. That’s not normally the sort of story that ends with “and Brooks played a full allotment of snaps in Week 3,” but we’ll see. The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero reports that Brooks is “considered week to week.” Brooks should be regarded as a drop candidate in shallow leagues on snaps and opportunities alone, but if he’s not healthy, that may expand to more leagues.

The good news is that this is unrelated to Brooks’ history of knee injuries and it sounds like he has a shot at suiting up for Week 3. The bad news is that Brooks originally suffered this groin injury during training camp and is still dealing with it two weeks into the season. Brooks only had five carries and one catch before exiting Week 2’s win over Atlanta. Even if he is healthy for next week’s game, Brooks is barely on the fantasy radar right now.

Hubbard operated as the Panthers’ unquestioned RB1, out-carrying Jonathon Brooks 12-5. He got on the board early with a touchdown catch near the goal line. It was his second touchdown grab of the year and his third time finding the end zone in total. Brooks also left the game early with a groin injury and his status for Week 3 is up in the air. Hubbard was already going to project for RB2 numbers with Brooks in the middle. He will push to the middle of the RB2 pack if Brooks is out versus the Browns.

Brooks went down on a routine tackle in the fourth quarter and was slow to get up. He eventually left for the locker room with a towel over his head. Brooks missed time late in training camp with the groin issue and it seemingly flared up against the Falcons. He had five carries for 16 yards before leaving the game. AJ Dillon will back up Chuba Hubbard if Brooks is unavailable for Week 3.

Hubbard was the clearcut lead back for the run-heavy Carolina offense. Jonathon Brooks saw five touches on the day, and ran six pass routes for 29 routes for Hubbard, who was the Panthers’ primary red zone back throughout the game. For now Hubbard’s role in the run-first Panthers offense seems secure while the team eases Brooks into action. That could change at some point this season. Hubbard will be a locked-in RB2 option next week against a middling Falcons defense.

In his first regular season action, Brooks played well behind lead back Chuba Hubbard, who finished the day with ten carries and three receptions. The highlight of Brooks’ day came on a sideline throw from Bryce Young that went for 48 yards. Brooks, coming off multiple major knee injuries, showed impressive burst and speed on the catch and run. That Hubbard was the team’s primary option inside the ten yard line is bad news for Brooks’ touchdown upside in the Carolina offense. For now he profiles as a bench stash in case Hubbard misses time this season.