Bryce Young had an inconsistent sophomore season, but the Panthers are ready to take the next step with the kid. Dave Canales has the team pointed in the right direction, and they made a significant investment in Tet McMillan in the draft. Let’s dive into the 2025 Carolina Panthers & see what values we can get in our redraft fantasy football leagues!
Overdrafted:
Chuba Hubbard, Running Back (RB18, Pick 47 Overall)
Chuba Hubbard personifies the running back dead zone for me in 2025. These are individuals who are likely to select players higher than they should due to perceived scarcity at the position, resulting in taking “safe” picks and reaching for better values at other positions.
Hubbard finished 2024 as the RB13 in fantasy points per game, but just 35th in fantasy points per opportunity. He was a volume merchant, ranking third in snap share, fourth in opportunity share, eleventh in carries, and twelfth in targets. He was the entire Panthers’ run game, primarily due to Jonathan Brooks’ D.O.A. rookie campaign and the guaranteed volume. He wasn’t a particularly efficient back, ranking 33rd in yards per touch, 36th in yards created per touch, and 31st in juke rate.
In steps Rico Dowdle, who left the Cowboys in the dust for the Panthers. Cue the Brian Windhorst, “now why would they do that” meme? Dowdle is expected to have a significant role on the Panthers in 2025, one that will likely drastically reduce Chuba Hubbard’s playing time.
They’re virtually identical in numerous under-the-hood stats: PlayerProfiler’s “True” YPC, Yards per touch, juke rate, yards created per touch, and evaded tackles per game. Dowlde far outpaced Chuba in yards per route run and yards per reception last year. Dowdle is going to chew into Chuba’s production just enough to make him a bad pick at this price point.
Underdrafted:
Tetairoa McMillan, Wide Receiver (WR28, Pick 59 Overall)
Rookie wide receivers in the mid-rounds of fantasy football drafts are the cheat code to fantasy football success. Last year, we saw Brian Thomas, Jr., Ladd McConkey & Malik Nabers break out from that draft spot. The year prior, we saw Jordan Addison, Zay Flowers, Tank Dell, and Rashee Rice come up from the depths to be fantasy football forces.
This year, there are a handful of receivers going in the middle rounds that should return great value in 2025 fantasy football leagues. While some disagree, I believe Tet McMillan to be one of those players. He is a Drake London-level talent, taken with high draft capital, and he deserved every bit of it. He is an alpha X receiver who has the potential to be a dominant force for years to come. At pick 59, he’s an easy click in fantasy football drafts.
Sleeper:
Bryce Young, Quarterback (QB26, Pick 181 Overall)
Bryce Young’s 2024 Sophomore campaign started just as disastrously as his rookie year ended. He was 31 for 56 for 245 yards, zero touchdowns, and three interceptions, while completing 55% of his passes at 4.4 yards per pass attempt in his first two games of 2025. The Panthers let him ride the pine until week eight, and when he returned, he was a completely different player.
His completion percentage jumped to 62%, his yards per game increased to 210, and he threw 15 touchdowns to 6 interceptions in ten games, averaging 6.6 yards per attempt. He was QB8 in fantasy points per game after his return, and he finished strong: he had three multiple-touchdown games to end the 2024 campaign. He’s a flier in 1QB leagues, but a strong second quarterback in 2QB leagues if you want to wait on the position.
