Sanders set for major role

Panthers RB Miles Sanders is in a strong situation to provide fantasy value this year. The Panthers gave Sanders the biggest RB contract in free agency by total money ($25 million), guaranteed money ($13 million), and average annual salary ($6.25 million). HC Frank Reich and company want Sanders to be their feature back, and they place a lot of faith in his abilities to shoulder large responsibilities. “Miles is a three-down back, and he can do a little bit of everything," said Reich during OTAs. "He’s explosive, he’s fast, and he has good vision and patience. Really smart. And on third down, when he has to block, he’s a willing blocker.” There isn't a ton of competition behind Sanders, either. Chuba Hubbard logged just 6.3 carries and 0.9 targets per game in 2022 following the Christian McCaffrey trade, and Raheem Blackshear and Spencer Brown combined for 44 touches in last year’s Panthers backfield. We project a major workload for Sanders in 2023, though his ceiling will depend on how many scoring opportunities the Panthers' offense will have with a rookie QB at the helm. See where we have him slated in our current RB rankings.

The Panthers' backfield returned to a proper committee in Week 11 vs. the Cowboys. RB Miles Sanders handled a team-leading 11 carries for 50 rushing yards on a 45.7% snap share, all highs since Week 4 vs. the Vikings. His teammate Chuba Hubbard stayed active in the contest, tallying 65 total yards on 12 touches, but saw his lowest share of the RB carries (52.3%) over his last four games. Perhaps this is the beginning of Sanders returning to good health after being marred by groin and shoulder injuries to open 2023. Hubbard's rise in the first place can be primarily attributed to simply being the healthier of the two for a while, so it'll be worth monitoring this usage next week vs. the Titans. For now, fantasy managers should see if Sanders was dropped to the waiver wire. He might be worth scooping.

Week 10’s showdown vs. the Bears showed fantasy managers that Panthers RB Miles Sanders is probably safe to drop onto the waiver wire in shallow leagues. The veteran accumulated 10 total yards on 4 touches. Sanders played on just 38.3% of the Panthers’ offense snaps, actually lost yardage as a runner (2 carries, -5 yards), and generally just hasn’t been helpful since Week 3. Fellow RB Chuba Hubbard didn’t perform much better in the contest (11 touches, 39 total yards), though he continues to win the touch battle in this backfield. Hubbard will be the preferred runner in Carolina again in Week 11. However, he’ll have a tough time posting more than flex-level numbers against a Cowboys’ defense that ranks as the seventh-toughest RB matchup per our adjusted fantasy points allowed.

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.

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.

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.