Fantasy Football Player Notes

Miles Sanders signed with the Carolina Panthers reuniting him with many familiar faces from his days with the Philadelphia Eagles. Duce Staley (former Eagles RB coach), Frank Reich (former Eagles coach) and Josh McCown (former Eagles QB) have all seen what Sanders can do, and that surely played a part in bringing him on as the team's 1-for-1 replacement for new Chicago Bears running back D'Onta Foreman. At a minimum, Sanders will operate as the main back on early downs, while Chuba Hubbard (RB62) and Raheem Blackshear split work on third downs. But I say at a minimum because those guys still have to prove themselves to the new coaching staff to earn substantial roles. Sanders has already proven his worth with these coaches before. And last year he showed everyone what he was capable of when he finished as the RB10 in half-point scoring overall/RB13 in points per game from Weeks 1-17. He ended the year averaging just south of five yards per carry and scored 13 rushing TDs after scoring zero in 2021. His carries inside the 10-yard line ranked inside the top five among all RBs.

And when Sanders saw his best-receiving usage to date - 50 receptions for 509 yards as a rookie in 2019 - it was under Staley's tenure.

With Sanders' uber-efficient rushing running behind an offensive line that finished 9th in adjusted line yards in 2022, Carolina is a great landing spot for him. His rushing alone should earn him production similar to what we saw from Foreman after the team traded away Christian McCaffrey. From Week 7 onward, Foreman sat as the RB21 in total points and RB22 in points per game. He ranked fourth in the NFL in total rushing yards (852). But his path to back-end RB2 status was not consistent whatsoever. Foreman rushed for over 110 yards in half of the last ten games, while finishing with fewer than 40 rushing yards in four of his others. His inconsistency was due to a lack of pass-game work causing him to be completely phased out of games that Carolina was out-matched in. But, I don't think that will necessarily be the case for Sanders. The former Eagle has the chance to be a full-blown workhorse with an expanded receiving role based on the four-year, $25 million ($13 million guaranteed) commitment from his new team.

Chuba Hubbard finished the 2022 season as PFF's 21st-highest-graded rusher averaging 4.9 yards per carry. He also flashed efficiency in the receiving game ending the year tied for 6th in yards per route run (1.55) with Austin Ekeler. After the team traded Christian McCaffrey to the 49ers, Hubbard's role increased from Week 7 onward as he was able to carve out a 1B role in the backfield alongside D'Onta Foreman. With a three-down skillset, Hubbard has massive fantasy football appeal as a handcuff to Miles Sanders in 2023. Hubbard also has a chance to capture the main RB receiving role in the Panthers backfield.

The No. 1 pick in this year's NFL Draft, Alabama's Bryce Young is a pinpoint passer with a strong arm, quick release and the sort of field-reading ability that will endear him to Panthers head coach Frank Reich. Young is agile, but he isn't going to add a great deal of fantasy value with his legs. The biggest concern with Young is his small frame. He's listed at 5-10, 204, but he might play at under 200 pounds. Young is a good bet to be the Panthers' Week 1 starter and might be able to provide fantasy managers with midrange or low-end QB2 value.

After catching 26 passes for the Falcons in 2021, Hayden Hurst had 52 receptions for the Bengals in 2022, but he averaged a career-low 8.0 yards per catch and scored only two touchdowns. Now with the Panthers, Hurst will be entering his age-30 season. The change of venue improves Hurst's target outlook, but those targets will probably be coming from a rookie quarterback and won't be as valuable as targets from Joe Burrow.