Miles Sanders is one of my absolute favorite buys in Dynasty heading into the 2023 campaign. Coming off a career season Sanders signed the richest free agent contract in the league. Despite this and his numerous career accolades, he is coming off the board as one of the best values at the RB position. There isn’t another player in the NFL who offers high-end RB1 upside at mid-level RB2 prices. Let’s dive into the Carolina Panthers’ starting RB without further ado.
Background
Sanders came to the NFL via Penn State University. The talented back from Woodland Hills High School in Pittsburgh, PA, was the RB1 of the 2016 class, according to 247Sports.com. Despite being the top recruit in his class, Sanders found himself blocked at PSU by Saquon Barkley. Interestingly enough, as most seem to do today, Sanders bided his time at Happy Valley until Barkley’s departure instead of transferring to another program. Then in 2018, Sanders took advantage of his starting opportunity and put down a fantastic junior year. You can find his numbers and highlights below.
| Rushing | Receiving | Scrimmage | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Plays | Yds | Avg | TD |
| *2016 | Penn State | Big Ten | FR | RB | 13 | 25 | 184 | 7.4 | 1 | 2 | 24 | 12.0 | 1 | 27 | 208 | 7.7 | 2 |
| *2017 | Penn State | Big Ten | SO | RB | 10 | 31 | 191 | 6.2 | 2 | 6 | 30 | 5.0 | 0 | 37 | 221 | 6.0 | 2 |
| *2018 | Penn State | Big Ten | JR | RB | 13 | 220 | 1274 | 5.8 | 9 | 24 | 139 | 5.8 | 0 | 244 | 1413 | 5.8 | 9 |
| Career | Penn State | 276 | 1649 | 6.0 | 12 | 32 | 193 | 6.0 | 1 | 308 | 1842 | 6.0 | 13 | ||||
Following his breakout season, Sanders decided to forgo his remaining eligibility to enter the NFL draft. He first went to the NFL combine and put up an impressive showing at Indianapolis. His numbers put him at the top of his class in virtually every athletic measurement. You can find his combine metrics below.
The Situation
Sanders was one of the first RBs taken in the 2019 draft class. After being selected in the second round of the draft, ‘Boobie Miles,’ as he is known, enjoyed tremendous success in the Eagle’s offense. Over his four years in the City of Brotherly Love, Sanders ran for over 3,700 yards and chipped in nearly 1,000 receiving yards on 124 catches to go along with a decent amount of TDs. Most impressively, Sanders was hyper-efficient averaging a robust 5.0 ypc. You can see his numbers below.
| Games | Rushing | Receiving | Total Yds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | Pos | No. | G | GS | Rush | Yds | TD | 1D | Lng | Y/A | Y/G | A/G | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Y/R | TD | 1D | Lng | R/G | Y/G | Ctch% | Y/Tgt | Touch | Y/Tch | YScm | RRTD | Fmb | AV | Awards |
| 2019 | 22 | PHI | RB | 26 | 16 | 11 | 179 | 818 | 3 | 30 | 65 | 4.6 | 51.1 | 11.2 | 63 | 50 | 509 | 10.2 | 3 | 19 | 45 | 3.1 | 31.8 | 79.4% | 8.1 | 229 | 5.8 | 1327 | 6 | 2 | 8 | AP ORoY-4 |
| 2020 | 23 | PHI | RB | 26 | 12 | 11 | 164 | 867 | 6 | 39 | 82 | 5.3 | 72.3 | 13.7 | 52 | 28 | 197 | 7.0 | 0 | 8 | 28 | 2.3 | 16.4 | 53.8% | 3.8 | 192 | 5.5 | 1064 | 6 | 4 | 6 | |
| 2021 | 24 | PHI | RB | 26 | 12 | 12 | 137 | 754 | 0 | 33 | 38 | 5.5 | 62.8 | 11.4 | 34 | 26 | 158 | 6.1 | 0 | 6 | 25 | 2.2 | 13.2 | 76.5% | 4.6 | 163 | 5.6 | 912 | 0 | 1 | 7 | |
| 2022* | 25 | PHI | RB | 26 | 17 | 15 | 259 | 1269 | 11 | 62 | 40 | 4.9 | 74.6 | 15.2 | 26 | 20 | 78 | 3.9 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 1.2 | 4.6 | 76.9% | 3.0 | 279 | 4.8 | 1347 | 11 | 2 | 10 | PB |
| Career | 57 | 49 | 739 | 3708 | 20 | 164 | 82 | 5.0 | 65.1 | 13.0 | 175 | 124 | 942 | 7.6 | 3 | 35 | 45 | 2.2 | 16.5 | 70.9% | 5.4 | 863 | 5.4 | 4650 | 23 | 9 | 31 | |||||
This offseason, the Carolina Panthers signed Sanders to the biggest free agent contract of any RB. He received a four-year $25.4 million deal. In a day when RBs are hard-pressed to find second contracts, this is a pretty significant deal. The Carolina Panthers will be in the first year of a rebuild. They did trade up to select Alabama QB Bryce Young with the top pick in the draft.
Young is dynamic but squarely on the small side for NFL QBs. Head Coach Frank Reich will surely want to use his new RB as much as he can to protect his new face of the franchise. Panthers staff has already come out and said they want to get Sanders more catches than he has had since his rookie season in Philadelphia.
Panthers plan to get Miles Sanders 50 catches? https://t.co/3OnyDKzThL
— NBC Sports EDGE Football (@NBCSEdgeFB) May 9, 2023
The Carolina staff is giving out all the signals that Sanders will be a three-down RB. He is already a dynamic playmaker. The Panthers have an above-average offensive line, especially in the rushing department. The Panther’s offensive line will be a downgrade from the Eagles unit Sanders played with last year. However, it is an improving unit that helped D’Onta Foreman and Chuba Hubbard have extremely efficient numbers last year. Expect more of the same from Sanders, who is a far better athlete and prospect than either of those players.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, it is always risky when a player switches teams. Much of that risk factor is mitigated by the fact that Sanders knows Frank Reich and has experience in similar systems with extremely familiar verbiage. Both men spent time together in Philadelphia when Sanders was a younger player. This should lead to a smooth transition for the player and the coach.
One of the best parts about Sanders is his price. As our very own Matt O’Hara mentioned on the podcast recently, Sanders is coming off the board with an ADP of RB22! That is an extreme value, given the heavy workload he is about to see. Give a search of the Dynasty Nerds Trade Finder, and you will also see him go for pennies on the dollar as below.
Ultimately, this is a game based on numbers—few, if any, players of the immense upside of Sanders at such a low price. For a proven commodity with a secure contract and familiarity with the system, I honestly cannot find a thing not to like about this player. Sanders is an excellent High-End RB2 for your squads. A player that will help you win championships and miraculously not break the bank while doing it. Do yourself a favor and get this player on your rosters. He will undoubtedly be the centerpiece of the Panther’s offensive for the next couple of seasons.
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