- Bam Knight starts for the Arizona Cardinals: Knight was a focal point of the Arizona offense, and the broadcast made it clear he has a shot at the third running back spot on the depth chart.
- Ja’Tavion Sanders plays for the Carolina Panthers: The receiving tight end played despite an injury early in the week and other important players resting for Carolina.
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Carolina Panthers @ Arizona Cardinals
Ja’Tavion Sanders starts for the Panthers: Once a popular fantasy sleeper pick, Sanders no longer appears to be a lock to make the Panthers roster.
Last season, Sanders split time with Tommy Tremble when both were healthy. He played 77% of the Panthers’ third-down snaps but only 35.5% of their early-down snaps in 11 personnel and 31.4% in 12 personnel, with Mitchell Evans playing ahead of him in those situations.
More concerningly, Sanders fell to third on the Panthers’ unofficial depth chart behind Evans despite playing more than him last season. Tremble was among the starters held out of this game, while Evans did not play after being carted off the field during practice last week, though his injury does not appear to be serious. Sanders also suffered an ankle injury Tuesday, but players who suffer even minor injuries during training camp are typically held out of the following preseason game.
Despite that, Sanders played every snap on the opening drive. Veterans James Mitchell and Feleipe Franks took over to start the second drive, with Sanders returning for just one play. Sanders did not play after that drive, while several other players who started the game remained on the field.
Sanders could still make the roster and carve out a role as a third-down specialist, but his usage suggests he is unlikely to play as much as he did last season. He is already only a consensus top-45 fantasy tight end for 2026, and even that ranking may prove too optimistic.
The Carolina Panthers adjust without Chris Brazzell II: The Panthers’ third-round pick underwent surgery on his torn LCL a week ago, ruling him out for the season.
Carolina’s top two wide receiver spots are locked in with Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker, both of whom sat out tonight. Brazzell was expected to compete with Xavier Legette for the No. 3 receiver role, but his injury makes Legette the clear favorite for the job. Legette also suffered an injury in practice earlier this week and did not play, though head coach Dave Canales said he would have been held out regardless because the starters were not playing.
That put the spotlight on Carolina’s backups, as there could be a significant opportunity for another receiver if one of the top three misses time this season. Hunter Renfrow ranked fourth among the Panthers’ wide receivers in routes and targets last season but was not re-signed. Brycen Tremayne, Jimmy Horn Jr. and David Moore were next on the team in routes run, while John Metchie III joined Carolina in free agency after finishing the 2025 season as a starter for the New York Jets.
The Panthers had a clear usage pattern in 11 personnel, with Moore at X, Tremayne at Z and Metchie in the slot. Metchie has a good chance to make the roster and would be the most likely beneficiary if Coker misses time. Moore could also have a path to increased playing time if Carolina wants to use McMillan more frequently in the slot or if McMillan suffers an injury.
Horn appears to be the odd man out of the group. He not only failed to play with the top receivers available for this game, but he also wasn’t initially part of the next group, with Metchie continuing to work from the slot alongside different combinations of outside receivers. Horn also wasn’t among the Panthers’ primary kick returners early in the game.
Unless Carolina keeps seven wide receivers or injuries create another opening, Horn appears unlikely to make the 53-man roster.
Bam Knight starts for Arizona and has a chance to make the roster: Knight is currently fifth on the depth chart, but he has a chance to be named RB3 on the depth chart.
Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier were among the key Cardinals who did not play. James Conner isn’t on the PUP list, but he has held himself out of team drills, which contributed to his absence from this game. Trey Benson was also held out after dealing with knee discomfort earlier in the week.
That left Knight as the starter. He played all 15 snaps on the Cardinals’ opening drive and continued to see action later in the first half. Both the pregame show and game broadcast mentioned Knight as a candidate for the No. 3 running back job. That role typically requires special-teams contributions, and while Knight has limited regular-season experience there, he has still logged more professional special-teams snaps than Conner or Benson.
Knight did little in this game to either help or hurt his chances of making the roster. Playing deep into the second quarter typically isn’t an encouraging sign, but the Cardinals had only two other healthy running backs available, including Evan Hull, who had been with the team for just three days. Arizona’s running back depth will be worth monitoring, particularly because Conner or Benson could become trade candidates if another team needs help at the position before the season.
Miscellaneous Notes
- Arizona rested several key players for this game, including quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew, running backs Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier, wide receivers Michael Wilson, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Kendrick Bourne, and tight end Trey McBride.
- Head coach Mike LaFleur spent the past three seasons as the Los Angeles Rams’ offensive coordinator, where the team had a policy of resting its starters throughout the preseason. The Cardinals may have held out so many players because this was the Hall of Fame Game, but LaFleur’s history suggests we may not see some of them until the regular season.
- Jalen Brooks and Simi Fehoko were the main wide receivers, with Xavier Weaver joining them in three-receiver sets. It’s unlikely all three make the roster, given that four wide receivers sat out and fifth-round rookie Reggie Virgil is likely to make the roster.
- While James Conner isn’t on the PUP list, he has held himself out of team drills, which contributed to his absence from this game.
- Cardinals running back Trey Benson was dealing with knee discomfort earlier in the week, which kept him out of tonight’s game.
- Third-year tight end Tip Reiman remains on the PUP list with an ankle injury.
- Carolina running back Jonathon Brooks did not play in this game. It’s unclear whether the Panthers view him similarly to the other key starters who were rested or were simply being cautious with his return after he missed all of last season.
- Tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders suffered an ankle injury on Tuesday. He notably fell to third on the Panthers unofficial depth chart behind Mitchell Evans. Evans was carted off the field during practice last week, but the injury doesn’t appear to be serious.
- Other Carolina players who rested for this game included quarterback Bryce Young, running back Chuba Hubbard and tight end Tommy Tremble.
Table Notes
• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.
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