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\nTROY HULL | THE CHARLOTTE POST
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\nCarolina Panthers running back A.J. Dillon adds a short-yardage power option to a corps that includes Chuba Hubbard and Jonathon Brooks.
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\nTROY HULL | THE CHARLOTTE POST
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\nCarolina Panthers running back A.J. Dillon adds a short-yardage power option to a corps that includes Chuba Hubbard and Jonathon Brooks.
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Since arriving in 2024, Carolina Panthers coach Dave Canales has preached a preference for establishing a proficient ground game to set up downfield passes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But during Canales\u2019 tenure, the Panthers have struggled to convert on third-and-short, failing to extend drives and giving opposing offenses additional series.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ahead of the 2026 regular-season opener Sunday against Chicago, Carolina offensive coordinator Brad Idzik is confident their diverse trio of running backs \u2013 Chuba Hubbard, Jonathon Brooks and A.J. Dillon \u2013 will deliver more consistently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think in our third-and-short situations (we need to) make sure that we\u2019re complementing our schemes … getting downhill,\u201d Idzik said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As a first-year play caller, Idzik stressed the need to recognize when a running back should look for an explosive opportunity and when to find a \u201csliver of light.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Panthers converted 36.4% of third-down snaps in 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a time and a place for trying to get the big splash play and then there’s a time and a place to find the first sliver of light and go get it for us and extend these drives,\u201d Idzik said. \u201cGetting your pads low, protecting the ball and going to get us that yard.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Panthers appear to have more weapons.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With Hubbard entering the season as the No. 1 running back and Brooks serving as a speed-threat alternative on third down, Dillon could prove to be a key short-yardage option.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
A 2020 second-round draft pick, Dillon is listed at 6-foot-0, 247 pounds and continues to run with authority, gaining 4.1 yards per carry in 609 career attempts. He collected 97 first downs in 2021 and \u201822 combined while with the Green Bay Packers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWatch A.J. Dillon and you see the way he runs downhill,\u201d Idzik said. \u201cHe captured our play style right away. When you\u2019re a bigger back, he can drag some bodies along the way, which is fun to watch.\u201d\u00a0
Don\u2019t overlook third-string quarterback Haynes King.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The 2025 ACC Offensive Player of the Year could be utilized on short-yardage trick plays. To protect Carolina\u2019s contractual rights, King likely will remain on the 53-man roster, despite Canales preferring to carry only two quarterbacks on game days. Well-versed as a dual threat in his college days at Georgia Tech, the Panthers could utilize King similarly to the way the New Orleans Saints gameplans for Taysom Hill.\u00a0<\/p>\n
With three healthy running backs and injured Trevor Etienne (ankle) slated to return after Week 4, the Panthers likely will call upon all of them at some point during the season.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think across the league and in history, you need all your backs,\u201d Canales said. \u201cYou need them all, and that\u2019s why A.J.\u2019s here. Trevor will come back to us at some point, and then we have Trey Tyus on the practice squad, so guys have got to be ready to go, and they have to prepare that way.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
“We try to warn them of that, but it becomes a reality when you’re out there, you’re taking those reps. So really valuable time for AJ.”\u00a0<\/p>\n
Open with RB trifecta\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ideally, the Panthers would like to replicate how the Detroit Lions and Seattle Seahawks have recently leveraged their backfield rotation. The Lions thrived with Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, and the Seahawks, fueled by Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet, captured Super Bowl LX in February.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Questions remain how the Panthers will employ their personnel.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hubbard gained 1,195 yards in 2024 and earned a four-year contract extension. He followed it up by compiling just 511 during an injury-plagued campaign. He also lost his starting role to Rico Dowdle but never complained publicly.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Brooks is attempting to rebound from back-to-back knee injuries. After spending 2025 rehabilitating, the 2024 second-round draft pick appeared in his first preseason games last month but missed four recent practices with a sore groin. He returned to team activities on Wednesday as a limited participant, and his status remained unchanged Thursday. Canales remained optimistic that he would dress Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Dillon could prove to be the safety net.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I can do everything on the field,\u201d Dillon said. \u201cI\u2019ve started games. I\u2019ve played in playoff games. I\u2019ve been asked to catch … pass protect … run the ball.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt\u2019s no shot to anybody else; it\u2019s just anytime I step on the field, whatever the depth chart is, if I\u2019m in there at running back, I\u2019m in the RB1 mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Panthers utilized two-back sets just 49 times in 2025. If Brooks is healthy, Idzik predicted Hubbard could have more backfield company in \u201826. It may not be a traditional fullback look, but the formation could create mismatches. Idzik also hinted at positioning a tight end in the backfield.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPutting two backs out there is a great thing for us,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve done a little bit of it this offseason, for sure. There are also ways you can do it with the tight ends. We have some athletes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re not traditional, but putting two backs back there makes (opponents) honor multiple gaps. We have the pieces to create a multitude of gaps at the second level.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
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