Who Should I Start? Darren Waller or Ja'Tavion Sanders

Thursday, September 4, 6:15 PM

Miami Dolphins tight end Darren Waller (hip) was officially listed as a non-participant for the second straight day at practice on Thursday, according to Joe Schad of the Palm Beach Post. The Dolphins are bringing Waller along slowly after he was in retirement all of last year, but his absence from practice on Thursday is a bit concerning after head coach Mike McDaniel said on Wednesday that he would return the following day. The 32-year-old veteran is also listed with an actual injury for the first time since coming out of retirement to join the team. All summer, the Dolphins were taking it easy on Waller to get his conditioning up to speed. He will have one more chance on Friday to get back on the practice field before Sunday's Week 1 season opener against the Colts. Even if Waller is active, he'll likely be on a snap count, so he can't realistically be trusted in starting fantasy lineups.

Saturday, August 30, 10:12 AM

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders put together an impressive training camp, most notably as a receiver. Head coach Dave Canales recently spoke about his improvement as a pass-catcher. The second-year, fourth-round pick caught 33 passes for 342 yards and one touchdown during his rookie season. Interestingly, he did that on only 43 targets. Sanders was on the field often, but wasn't a favorite target for quarterback Bryce Young. Following an absence in Week 13 due to an injury, Sanders was almost completely uninvolved in the Carolina passing attack. He projects to be Carolina's primary tight end in 2025, but his rookie inconsistencies have made him nothing more than a late-round dart throw in fantasy football redraft leagues.