Carolina Panthers Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) put in a full week of practice and isn’t listed on the final injury report for Sunday’s game vs. the Texans. We don’t need to worry about Sanders’ health at this point, but his workload is uncertain. RB Chuba Hubbard has simply been the more effective player this season. We’re projecting Sanders to lead a fairly evenly split backfield this week, largely because Carolina gave him $13 million guaranteed). But neither Panther is better than a RB3.

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (hamstring) was added to Thursday's injury report and did not practice. Johnson, of course, just came off IR last week after missing four games with a hamstring injury. It's unclear if this was a planned day off or if he suffered a setback. We'll learn more tomorrow.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. That puts him on track to play vs. the Texans this weekend. RB Chuba Hubbard had a nice game in Sanders' absence back in Week 6 and has been the more effective RB in general so far this season. But we're projecting Sanders to step back in as Carolina's lead back at least for Week 8.

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (hamstring) put in a full week of practice and isn’t listed on the final injury report for Sunday’s game vs. the Rams. He’s been out since Week 1 but should be ready to step back into a full-time role this weekend.

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (hamstring) put in a full practice on Wednesday. It's confirmation that he'll be back in his usual role vs. the Rams this weekend. See where Johnson sits in the Week 7 WR Rankings.

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (hamstring) has been designated to return from IR. He'll practice this week and is eligible to play vs. the Rams on Sunday, which Johnson said last week that he expects to do. We'll track his status this week.

Panthers HC Frank Reich told his players Monday that he's handing over play-calling duties to OC Thomas Brown, NFL Network reports. The move comes as Carolina heads into a Week 7 bye. That should help with the transition, which has been rumored to be on the way since before this season started. Brown was a trendy head-coaching candidate last offseason but is in his first year as an NFL OC. So it's tough to know what to expect here. Brown did spend his first three NFL coaching seasons on Sean McVay's offensive staff, though. And it's hard to imagine the Panthers getting much less efficient on offense. They sit third-worst so far at 4.4 yards per play and third-worst in net yards per pass attempt. We'll see whether the switch produces any noticeable boost to offensive efficiency and/or fantasy upside.

Panthers RB Chuba Hubbard handled 19 of 25 team RB attempts in a Week 6 loss at Miami. He scored once on the ground but surprisingly added only 1 catch on 1 target. Hubbard’s score came on Carolina’s first possession, where he found daylight on a 6-yard run up the gut. Miles Sanders should return following a Week 7 bye, but Hubbard likely earned a bigger role going forward. Carolina squares off with the Texans in Week 8.

Panthers WR Adam Thielen stayed hot on Sunday, snagging 11 of 13 targets for 115 yards. He added his fourth TD over the past five weeks. Thielen did most of his damage in the first half, where he scored on an end zone ball from 8 yards out. The former Viking has now tallied 15+ PPR points in five straight. He’ll remain a must-start following a Week 7 bye.

The Panthers have ruled S Vonn Bell and S Xavier Woods out for Sunday's game against the Dolphins. Woods comes as no surprise, as he's dealing with a multi-week hamstring injury. Bell suffered a quad injury Thursday that kept him out of Friday's practice. Sam Franklin has been starting in Woods' spot and carries tackle upside into a matchup with speedy Miami. We'll see who fills in for Bell. IDP managers would love to get full playing time for Jeremy Chinn, but he played a season-low 30% of the snaps in Week 5, despite injuries at safety and LB. Fifth-round rookie Jammie Robinson is the other SS candidate. You can stash Chinn for now in case he gets the nod, or you could simply avoid the situation (beyond Franklin). We'll watch for more details.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) is out for Sunday's game vs. the Dolphins. He'd been battling a bum groin and then picked up a shoulder injury last week. Sanders gets a Week 7 bye to heal up. His absence this weekend leaves Chuba Hubbard as Carolina's lead back. Sanders and Hubbard have combined to average 19.2 carries and 7.6 targets per game this season. We're certainly not expecting Hubbard to soak up all of that. The Panthers also have RB Raheem Blackshear and could use WR Laviska Shenault in the running game. But Hubbard should get enough work to be a decent RB2 play in fantasy lineups.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (shoulder) missed practice again on Thursday. He's in real danger of missing this weekend's game vs. the Dolphins. Sanders' absence would leave Chuba Hubbard as Carolina's lead back -- and a lower-end, volume-based fantasy starter. Check back tomorrow for another update on Sanders.

Panthers HC Frank Reich told reporters Wednesday that RB Miles Sanders won't be practicing Wednesday because he "came out of the game with a little something" in his shoulder, according to Darin Gantt of the team website. Assuming the team didn't find buried treasure in that joint, Sanders is adding some sort of shoulder injury to a groin issue that has bothered him on several occasions already this year. We'll see how he progresses through the practice week, but Chuba Hubbard could be in for another solid share of backfield work in Week 6. He's worth holding -- or a modest waiver buy -- this week. No Panthers RB will be exciting against the Dolphins, however.

Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (hamstring) expects to be ready to play Week 7, following the team's Week 6 bye. Johnson has been on IR since going down with a hamstring injury in Week 2. He managed just a 3-48-0 line in the Week 1 blowout loss to the 49ers but will return as a big part of Pittsburgh's passing game. It'll be interesting to see how big a target share Johnson claims after WR George Pickens' success in his absence.

Panthers WR Adam Thielen posted a team-leading 107 yards with a TD on 10 catches in Week 5 vs. the Lions. Fellow wideout D.J. Chark also found the end zone in the contest, but it’s rookie WR Jonathan Mingo that deserves a shoutout here. Mingo ranked second on the team in targets (7) and posted a season-high 48 receiving yards in the contest. Thielen is the only Panthers’ pass-catcher we’d be excited to start in Week 6 vs. the Dolphins, but Mingo is a name to keep an eye on in redraft leagues.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders lost a fumble and took a backseat to teammate Chuba Hubbard in Week 5’s loss vs. the Lions. The veteran still has a groin injury that he's working through, so it makes sense that Carolina spread the wealth around. Sanders only logged 7 carries for 32 yards, though Hubbard’s 9 attempts for 35 yards weren’t much better. Neither RB was effective in the contest against the Lions’ stout run D. It also didn’t help matters that WR Laviska Shenault Jr. siphoned off 5 carries, but sometimes weird stuff happens. It’s possible both Sanders and Hubbard could be viable deeper league options in a much better matchup vs. the Dolphins in Week 6.

Panthers QB Bryce Young totaled 25 completions on 41 attempts for 247 passing yards with 3 TDs and 2 INTs in Week 5 vs. the Lions. After tossing his pair of INTs in the first half of the contest, the rookie turned his play around considerably and ended the fourth quarter with back-to-back 75-yard scoring drives. Those efforts weren’t enough to pull out a victory, but fantasy managers can be happy with 18.3 points in 4-point passing TD scoring. Next week, Young will have a tough test against the Dolphins.

Panthers WR Jonathan Mingo (concussion) put in a full week of practice and isn’t listed on the final Week 5 injury report. He’ll be back for Sunday’s game vs. the Lions. The rookie totaled 19 targets but just eight catches over the first three games of the season.

Panthers RB Miles Sanders (groin) is not listed on the final Week 5 injury report. He practiced all week, including a full workout on Friday. It's an upgrade over last week, when Sanders got in just two limited practices and was listed as questionable. We expect Sanders to re-take the backfield lead vs. the Lions this weekend after being out-snapped by RB Chuba Hubbard last week.

Broncos LB Josey Jewell (hip) returned to full practice Thursday. That certainly points to him playing Sunday against the Jets, after missing Week 4. We should get confirmation Friday afternoon, but plan to have Jewell available for your IDP lineups. Jewell's return figures to knock down LB Drew Sanders' playing time. We'll see exactly what the rookie's role looks like, though. He was pegged for an increased role in the Week 3 loss to the Dolphins that Jewell left early with the injury.