Cat Scratch Reader
We bring you another round of questions on July 4th!
Hello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! Its July 4th, you had a few really solid questions this week. If you happen to be chilling out by the pool or enjoying a BBQ, come for some light Panthers reading!
PantherBlueBlood: Will Chuba eclipse the 1000 rushing yards mark this season?
I’d actually go as far as to say 1k rushing yards should be the expectation for Chuba. He racked up 902 rush yards in 2023 and 1195 in 2024, a season where he was rewarded with a 4 year, $33.2 million contract extension. He also had 1135 and 1366 yards from scrimmage in those prior two seasons, respectively. While Carolina did opt to sign Rico Dowdle (also coming off a 1k yard rushing season) to a one year deal, and draft RB Trevor Etienne in the 4th round, the Panthers very much put their money where their mouth is with the Hubbard extension. If he remains healthy all season, 1,000 yards on the ground should be very doable. The only reasons I see it not happening are an injury, or Dowdle/Etienne take up more snaps than many have forecasted, which would bode well for the team anyway if the Panthers were to boast an effective 3-headed monster at that position.
right_turn_clyde: Which former Panther (player, coach, etc.) currently employed by another team will have the biggest impact (positive or negative) this year? I’m going negative with Jonathon Mingo because he’ll take up a roster spot without providing any value for the Cowboys.
I hate to do this, but I expect both Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield to turn in another season that makes the Panthers decision to part with them look bad. I could see Darnold also having the biggest negative impact if we see the version of him from the 2024 playoffs and not the almost MVP caliber year he had during the regular season. As far as non-quarterbacks, lets go with Brian Burns and Frankie Luvu. Burns is going to be on a defensive line that should take a ton of attention away from him and allow him to specialize as a pass rusher, which could see him getting a career high in sacks. Luvu is on a Washington team that seems to be going for broke to get into the Super Bowl, and they signed several defensive pieces to help around him, including long time great LB Bobby Wagner.
Bruce Guild: Do you ever see Brad Izik calling plays and truly running the offense on gameday or will it be that as long as Dave C is our coach he will maintain that role?
I don’t think that role is going to change any time in the near future. Part of the reason is Dave Canales definitely specializes on the offensive side of the ball, and he’s still growing as a play caller. Second part is he’s definitely...
