The Carolina Panthers’ youth movement has made some impressive improvements in Year 2 under head coach Dave Canales. But if their monday night football The loss to the San Francisco 49ers taught them something, which is that this squad – as currently constructed – isn’t ready to jump into contention just yet.
They are too inconsistent for any other notion. Head coach Dave Canales is still learning the job and dealing with some harsh truths along the way. Carolina’s long-term future looks promising, even if challenging this season may be a step too far when the pressure mounts.
And that once promising golden ticket is not making the desired progress.
The Carolina Panthers need more from Ja’Tavian Sanders, and he’s not delivering
The Panthers expected big things from J’Tavian Sanders in his sophomore season. The athletically talented tight end showed promise as a rookie, and most were expecting even more growth from the player this season. To say that it has not been implemented would be an understatement.
He has logged only 176 receiving yards from 25 receptions and no touchdowns this season. The former Texas player is struggling with some serious self-confidence issues at the moment.
Sanders gives up almost nothing after the catch. The explosiveness that caught everyone’s attention last season isn’t evident this time around, and his blocking remains a weak link that doesn’t seem to be getting better any time soon. His disappointing performance on prime-time in Week 12 was a microcosm of how things have turned out for the second-year pro in 2025.
Unless Sanders can raise his performance level over Carolina’s remaining five games, general manager Dan Morgan may be forced to find a legitimate No. 1 pass-catching tight end at some point in the offseason. Draft pundits are already linking Oregon prospect Kenyon Saadiq to the Panthers, boasting a player with mobility and playmaking ability that isn’t currently around.
This did not go as planned for Sanders, who had anticipated a real breakout campaign. However, all hope is not lost yet, especially as the player is not yet 23 years old.
It requires some significant improvements. Still, if he can’t demonstrate the desired improvement, Morgan may not have the patience to wait for a chance for Sanders to put it all together.
If the Panthers want to move forward and stay in the conversation with playoff hopefuls, they have no room for passers. Either Sanders will display more urgency and purpose, or he will likely be relegated to a secondary role when the 2026 campaign arrives.
It’s really that simple…
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