With veterans Ian Thomas and Tommy Trembled sidelined with injuries, rookie tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders will not only play in his first NFL game, but he’ll also start in his first NFL game when the Panthers travel to New Orleans to take on the Saints in week one.
After much success with the Cam Newton/Greg Olsen duo, the Panthers have struggled to get the tight ends involved in the offense. Last year Ian Thomas and Tommy Tremble had 28 receptions on 41 targets COMBINED. Comparatively, in 2016 Greg Olsen had 80 receptions on 127 targets.
That lack of production will likely change under new head coach Dave Canales.
“I think it’s tight end-friendly,” Canales said in May when describing his offense. “We don’t ask our tight ends to really be dominant blockers at the point of attack on runs a lot. We will ask them at times.”
“Within the scheme we throw a lot of play actions,” he continued. “The tight ends are involved in different ways. Just getting them in the flat, dragging them underneath the linebackers—the ball finds those guys a lot because we ask them to block and all of a sudden, they’re bluffing the linebacker and they show up on the other side.”
That’s perfect for a player like Sanders who came in the door saying he wanted to be the next Greg Olsen.
The road to achieving that lofty goal begins Sunday, but JT says he doesn’t feel the pressure that comes with it.
“If I go in the game and trust my preparation and trust the work I’ve been in throughout the week, I feel like I’m going to go out there and dominate.”
Dave Canales agrees.
“He’s been practicing with the ones all camp. He’s made great strides. He’s looked really good in what we’ve asked him to do. I don’t think this adds pressure to him. This is a situation he’s been in all camp. This is just another opportunity for him to show us what he can do.”
With the red zone threat Sanders looked like during training camp, he’s primed to be a favorite of Bryce Young inside the opponent’s 20 yard line. He’s also primed to be successful in Canales’ new “tight end friendly” offense and all things considered primed to take the starting role for good.