Ja'TavionSanders

News: 4 days agoSanders (coach's decision) is inactive for Sunday's game against the Bears, Darin Gantt of the team's official site reports.

Spin: Sanders, a fourth-round selection of the Panthers in the 2024 NFL Draft, will be a healthy scratch for Week 1 while Carolina rolls with Tommy Tremble, Mitchell Evans, Darren Waller and Feleipe Franks as the active tight ends for Sunday's regular-season opener. Sanders' next chance to suit up is Week 2 against the Falcons on Sunday, Sept. 20, though he may not be active for a game unless there's an injury to a tight end ahead of him on the depth chart.

ESPN Fantasy Projection: Sanders is back as a pass-catching tight end in Carolina, though he's unlikely to see a larger share of the target pie with veteran Darren Waller now in the mix. Sanders - a 2024 fourth-round pick - flashed as a rookie with a 33-342-1 receiving line while playing 55% of Carolina's offensive snaps and handling 9.1% of the targets across 16 games. He simply didn't progress in Year 2, posting a 29-190-1 line while playing 52% of the snaps and handling a 10% target share in 12 healthy games. Sanders has been an inefficient short-range target with little goal line activity thus far (four career end zone targets), placing the 23-year-old well off the fantasy radar.