On Friday, the Carolina Panthers released their final injury report ahead of this weekend’s regular-season opener against the New Orleans Saints. And, as expected, starting tight ends Tommy Tremble (hamstring/back) and Ian Thomas (calf) have been ruled out after missing each of this week’s practices.
Also as expected, their absences has opened the door for rookie Ja’Tavion Sanders to get the start at the position on Sunday. Head coach Dave Canales confirmed the nod following this afternoon’s session.
This, obviously, means the 21-year-old tight end is set to start in what will be his very first regular-season game in the NFL. Sanders earned the honor through his eye-opening offseason.
“It’s exponential growth, every day,” Canales said of Sanders during training camp. “What I’ve seen him do is just kinda really take big leaps in the techniques. And you’ll see that with young guys. You’ll see big leaps, and then you wanna get them to the point where it’s consistent. And then we take our incremental growth—just like some of the veteran guys who have been around.
“So JT is taking those steps that we’re looking for. Made a big play at Fan Fest to end it, to end the scrimmage on a corner. Had a couple nice plays today, nice catches. He’s doin’ it. He’s making the most of his opportunity. It’s pushed him right up with that first group, to be able to show the guys you can count on him and he’s been really dependable with that.”
Carolina selected Sanders to kick off the fourth round of the 2024 NFL draft. Over his last two years at the University of Texas, he recorded 99 receptions for 1,295 yards and seven touchdowns en route to a pair of First-Team All-Big 12 selections.
Sanders is currently joined at the position by 32-year-old veteran Jordan Matthews, the only other healthy tight end on the active roster. The Panthers can also promote Feleipe Franks from the practice squad to give themselves some depth.
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