Miles Sanders - Carolina Panthers RB
I feel like somehow, Miles Sanders could be in this article every week. Despite an incredibly underwhelming career with the Carolina Panthers to date, last weekend against the New Orleans Saints might have been his worst performance since joining the franchise.
It seemed the Panthers were hell-bent on driving up his trade value ahead of the deadline. It likely had the opposite effect and no interest worth accepting arrived.
Sanders' stats for the day make for grim reading. Two carries for minus-5 yards. Two receptions for minus-5 yards, This took his tally from four total touches to a negative 10 yards before he was removed from the offensive rotation.
To no one's surprise, Sanders remained on the squad as the deadline came. This leaves the Panthers with an expensive problem on their hands unless they release him before the 2025 offseason.
Dave Canales loves to predictably bring Sanders in on a third down pass play, usually ending in a swing or screen call for little to no gain. However, that dynamic could alter in Germany after the head coach revealed his plans to activate second-round rookie running back Jonathon Brooks to the roster.
Chuba Hubbard - who was rewarded for his outstanding improvement and growing influence with a new four-year deal - will remain the No. 1 option. The Panthers traded up for Brooks at No. 46 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, so he will likely overtake Sanders immediately as the team's RB2 - further reducing the Penn State product's already low snap count.
One look at Sanders' contract is a big part of the reason former general manager Scott Fitterer is no longer in town. Considering that cutting the player next spring comes with salary-cap savings of $5.22 million, this seems like an easy choice for the new regime as part of their long-term planning.