Chicago Bears vs Carolina Panthers Preview: Bears need to slow Chuba Hubbard

On her latest Making Monsters podcast, Taylor Doll previews the Week 1 matchup between the Chicago Bears and the Carolina Panthers with two individuals who know these teams inside and out.

First, she gets the skinny on Carolina by chatting with Alex Zietlow, who covers the Panthers for the Charlotte Observer. They break down the Panthers' side of the ball, including the 2026 expectations for Bryce Young and how important the running game will be. Alex also shares thoughts on Caleb Williams and the Bears offense. Next up, she brings on our own Jeff Berkes to cover what Chicago will look to do and how the Bears can bring home a victory.

Panthers running back Jonathon Brooks (2024 second-round pick) is completely off the injury list, and most assume he's in line to be RB1, but Alex disagrees.

"The general fantasy football fan is like, 'Well, Jonathon Brooks is like five running backs above Chuba Hubbard in the ESPN fantasy football drafts,' whatever the case may be, and I'm trying to tell the world Chuba Hubbard is running back one," Zietlow said. "Chuba Hubbard is a captain of this team. Like, he is probably the most important voice in that locker room outside of Bryce Young and maybe Derrick Brown on the defensive side. He is really important. In 2024, he had a 1000-yard season, and he didn't even play every game due to injury. So, like, this guy's really good."

Hubbard and Brooks give Carolina a potent backfield, and in the 90-degree heat, they could be a factor against the Bears' run defense.

Make sure you check out Taylor's show in either of the embeds below for her Bears vs. Panthers preview!

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