Ja'Tavion Sanders has slid down the Carolina Panthers tight end pecking order in training camp, and that is the part of the room that now matters most. Darren Waller, Tommy Tremble and Mitchell Evans are all ahead of him as preseason games move into full swing.
That is why the bills depth chart search is landing now: camp is deep underway, the roster battles are real, and Sanders is no longer being talked about like the breakout piece he once was. One year removed from those projections, he is now the tight end who would cause a surprise if he were not on the squad at all.
Dan Morgan brought Waller to the franchise, and the move has had the kind of effect that reshapes a room quickly. Waller could impact Sanders more than most because the competition is not just one name. It is Waller, Tremble and Mitchell Evans, leaving Sanders behind three players in a battle where every rep carries weight.
That matters because the Carolina Panthers are not dealing with this in a vacuum. This summer has already brought injuries and roster battles, and the club is trying to sort out who fits before decisions tighten. In that setting, a former breakout candidate losing ground is not a small detail; it is part of how the roster is being sorted.
There is still a path for Sanders, but it runs through performance now, not reputation from last season. If he is going to change the picture, it has to happen before the Panthers settle the room and move on with the players who have already moved ahead of him.
Trevin Wallace is facing a different kind of pressure, but the lesson is the same. He was a 2024 third-round selection, fans expected a major leap, and that leap has not yet matched the hype. The Panthers also secured Devin Lloyd in free agency, adding a second-team All-Pro linebacker to a group that is being measured against expectations as much as production.
By 2026, the Panthers are supposed to be defending their NFC South title, and camp decisions like this are part of how that kind of season is built. Sanders is not out of the picture, but he is running short on time to climb back into the role many thought he would own.
