Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales was asked after Tuesday\u2019s OTA session about the progress 2025 fourth-round pick Trevor Etienne has made going into his second season with the team.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t![\"Carolina](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/2025-09-07T201124Z_1141492942_MT1USATODAY27028611_RTRMADP_3_CAROLINA-PANTHERS-RUNNING-BACK-TREVOR-ET.jpeg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCarolina Panthers running back Trevor Etienne (23) returns a kickoff during the second quarter of an NFL football matchup at EverBank Stadium, Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025 in Jacksonville, Fla.
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCorey Perrine\/Florida Times-Union<\/p>\n
The talk of the town for the Carolina Panthers during OTAs the last two weeks has centered around the return of running back Jonathon Brooks<\/a>, and the hype train has finally arrived onto the national scene<\/a> as well.<\/p>\n Brooks deserves plenty of the headlines after working his way back from a second severe knee injury, but the rest of the team\u2019s running back room is looking just as exciting with Chuba Hubbard, AJ Dillon, and Trevor Etienne.<\/p>\n After Tuesday\u2019s OTA session, head coach Dave Canales was asked about the latter and shared why he doesn\u2019t plan to give up on the second-year player the team drafted last year in the fourth-round despite fans already seeming to write him off.<\/p>\n Carolina Panthers HC Dave Canales sees good progress from RB Trevor Etienne<\/p>\n \u201cHe looks great, he looks fast, we certainly trust him back there returning the ball and the way that he\u2019s grown in that phase,\u201d Canales said of Etienne. \u201cHe can help the team in a lot of ways, that\u2019ll help him too. I am excited to see him touch the ball when we get to the preseason and start playing real ball with the guys. That\u2019s going to be exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n Last season, the Panthers\u2019 offense was fully committed to running a two-back set using Hubbard and Rico Dowdle. Etienne, as the team\u2019s RB3, got limited action even when Hubbard was hurt, logging just 20 rushing attempts.<\/p>\n With Dowdle out of the door, the spot as the complement to Hubbard is wide-open, although Brooks is well on his way toward earning that role. However, that doesn\u2019t mean Etienne has to be an offensive afterthought again in Year 2.<\/p>\n \u201cJust to continue to build on all of the information for the whole offense and building that trust,\u201d Canales added when asked what Etienne needs to show offensively. \u201cWhich he has and he\u2019s been working really hard.\u201d<\/p>\n Watching from afar on the injured reserve and working within the RB room, Brooks got a firsthand look at what Etienne could potentially offer to the backfield.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s a great player,\u201d Brooks said Tuesday after practice. \u201cHe\u2019s elusive. He can do running back or special teams. He\u2019s been good for us. He\u2019s a great player on and off the field.\u201d<\/p>\n Preseason will be a big opportunity for Etienne to really prove himself as an offensive contributor. He\u2019s already taken to the punt return role and ran with it (no pun intended), despite limited experience. He\u2019s going to have a role on this team one way or another, fans shouldn\u2019t be writing him off too early.<\/p>\n \t\t\t Carolina Panthers News<\/p>\n![\"Dec](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/2024-12-02T020526Z_1494485410_MT1USATODAY24889420_RTRMADP_3_NFL-TAMPA-BAY-BUCCANEERS-AT-CAROLINA-PAN.jpeg\")
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