Ja'Tavion Sanders Fantasy Stats

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders was hopeful to take a step forward in 2026, but that doesn't appear to be the case right now. The 23-year-old has yet to play a game this season and has fallen to probably fourth on the depth chart. At the moment, Sanders is likely behind Darren Waller, Tommy Tremble, and Mitchell Evans for playing time in Carolina right now. The former fourth-round pick finished with 342 receiving yards during his rookie season in 2024. Sanders hasn't been able to capitalize on it and is unlikely to play unless an injury or two occur at some point.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders finds himself as a healthy inactive for the second straight week in Week 2 on Sunday against the division-rival Atlanta Falcons, according to Joe Person of The Athletic. Sanders has become the odd man out in the Panthers' tight end room early in the 2026 season, which was expected to be the case after the team added veteran pass-catching tight end Darren Waller to the mix during training camp. With Sanders in street clothes again this weekend, the Panthers will roll with Waller, Tommy Tremble, Mitchell Evans, and Feleipe Franks at the position in Atlanta. Waller is the most fantasy-relevant of the group, but he is still a tough sell as a starter in fantasy football lineups as he continues to work his way into football shape. The 34-year-old caught both of his targets for 28 yards in the Week 1 season-opening loss to the Chicago Bears. For now, Sanders is off the fantasy radar in basically all leagues.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders is a healthy inactive for the team's season opener in Week 1 against the Chicago Bears, according to Darin Gantt of the team's official website. Sanders will not play to begin the season and has become the odd man out in the Panthers' TE room after they signed veteran Darren Waller during training camp this summer. In addition to Waller, Carolina has Tommy Tremble, Mitchell Evans, and Feleipe Franks on the active roster for Sunday's game. The 23-year-old Sanders, a fourth-rounder in 2024 from the University of Texas, has caught only 62 of his 77 targets for 532 yards and two touchdowns in 29 games (13 starts) in his first two NFL seasons, and barring an injury to one of the team's other TEs, he could be a healthy scratch again in Week 2 when the Panthers take on the division-rival Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Sept. 20.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders might not be as appealing of a fantasy option as he was earlier in the summer. The Panthers recently signed veteran tight end Darren Waller to a deal for the 2026 season. He has been taking first-time reps, which pushes the rest of the tight ends down a spot. The latest unofficial depth chart has Sanders listed as third behind Waller and Tommy Tremble. The presence of Waller is certainly going to hurt Sanders' path to playing time. The 23-year-old still has decent upside as a dynasty stash, but he isn't someone who should be rostered in redraft formats to begin the season.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders has seen his redraft outlook take another hit with Darren Waller now working into the first-team offense. Sanders already had competition from Tommy Tremble and Mitchell Evans, and Carolina's latest unofficial depth chart lists him third at the position. Waller is still buried on that chart while he ramps up, but the practice usage tells a different story. The veteran got his most extensive team-drill work Wednesday, including snaps with Bryce Young and the starters, and Young connected with him several times during the joint practice against Houston. Sanders is coming off a disappointing second season in which he caught 29 of 34 targets for 190 yards and one touchdown in 13 games, down from 342 receiving yards as a rookie. Waller, meanwhile, scored six touchdowns in nine games for Miami last season and gives Carolina another proven receiving option at tight end. His age and injury history leave some uncertainty, but Sanders' immediate path to routes and targets has narrowed considerably. RotoBaller recently recommended leaving him undrafted in most 2026 leagues, which fits where his redraft value stands now.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders has seen his fantasy value further drop this offseason. Throughout his career, he has 62 catches for 532 yards and two touchdowns over his first two seasons. He was even less productive in 2025, finishing with 29 receptions for 190 yards and one touchdown in 13 games. Things went from bad to worse as Sanders missed five games with an ankle sprain and later suffered a season-ending broken fibula in Week 17. Now he has to compete with Tommy Tremble for snaps, while Carolina recently added Darren Waller. Waller scored six touchdowns in nine games for Miami last season despite missing time with injuries. Sanders is the better receiving option than Tremble, but Carolina has rarely given its tight ends enough targets to support a fantasy starter, and the addition of Waller makes those targets harder to find. He should therefore remain undrafted in most 2026 leagues. Dynasty managers can still hold him, but another disappointing campaign could send him to the waiver wire.

ESPN's Mike Kaye writes that Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders "might need to battle to keep his job" in Carolina after the addition of veteran Darren Waller on a one-year deal on Wednesday. Sanders has struggled with ankle injuries over the last two seasons and had surgery for his most recent ankle injury last season. The Panthers kept Sanders, Mitchell Evans, Tommy Tremble, and James Mitchell on their 53-man roster in 2025, but with Waller now on board, a dynamic shift could be coming to the team's TE room. Evans and Tremble are traditional TEs, with Waller and Sanders primarily pass-catchers. The 34-year-old Waller will become the oldest non-specialist on the roster when he officially signs. Kaye observes that the Panthers entered Wednesday with just three non-specialists over 30 years old. Feleipe Franks is also held in high regard for his contributions on special teams, which could push Sanders off the roster at the end of the preseason.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders (ankle) left Tuesday's training camp practice with an ankle injury, but head coach Dave Canales said he had a great day, according to Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer. It doesn't sound like Sanders suffered a serious injury, but we'll keep an eye on his status moving forward. The 23-year-old former fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft from the University of Texas had a disappointing sophomore campaign in 2025, playing in only 13 regular-season games while catching 29 passes for 190 yards and one touchdown. Sanders had a 33-342-1 line in 16 games as a rookie, so he hasn't exactly moved the needle much in fantasy football early in his NFL career. Going into Year 3, Sanders is expected to be Carolina's primary pass-catching TE, but he also has to contend with both Tommy Tremble and Mitchell Evans. The Panthers' offense just hasn't relied enough on the TE position to make Sanders matter in most fantasy football leagues. Sanders is outside of RotoBaller's top-41 rankings at the position for 2026.

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders was limited to only 12 games in 2025 as he dealt with a high-ankle sprain early in the year before breaking his fibula in Week 17. While he showed some promising flashes, whether because of his injuries or an offensive system that has not asked much of its tight ends in the passing game, Sanders was never a consistent contributor, failing to reach 35 receiving yards in any game after Week 2 and being held out of the end zone until Week 16. Sanders is fully recovered from his late-season injury, and while the Panthers did not make any meaningful additions to the position through free agency or the draft, head coach Dave Canales has never had a tight end reach 50 receptions, 500 yards, or five touchdowns in his time as play caller for either the Panthers or Buccaneers. Despite his obvious physical abilities, any calls for a Year 3 breakout from Sanders involve a fair amount of wishful projection, and he is likely a player that will start the year on waivers in most 2026 redraft leagues.

A fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders has struggled to break through to fantasy-relevant production in the first two years of his NFL career. Sanders battled injury in 2025, missing time early in the year with an ankle sprain and then suffering a season-ending broken fibula in Week 17. He finished the year with 29 catches for 190 yards and one touchdown on 34 targets across 13 games. Still, Sanders should have an opportunity to emerge as a key piece of the Panthers' passing game in 2026. His primary competition for playing time in Carolina is veteran tight end Tommy Tremble, who excels as a blocker but has never reached 250 receiving yards in any of his five NFL seasons. In dynasty formats, Sanders could be a worthy buy-low target for managers searching for upside at the tight end position.