Panthers Week 6 injury report: The latest on Miles Sanders, Chandler Zavala and more
The Carolina Panthers will be without their starting running back against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday at Hard Rock Stadium.
The team ruled out running back Miles Sanders (shoulder) for the Week 6 matchup on Friday. Sanders, who has gotten off to a mediocre start in his first season with the franchise, sustained the injury in the team’s Week 5 loss to the Detroit Lions.
Five players ruled out against Dolphins
With Sanders set to miss the matchup, Chuba Hubbard will start in his place in the backfield, according to head coach Frank Reich. Wide receiver Laviska Shenault and kick returner Raheem Blackshear, who has been a healthy scratch on game days since Week 2, could also see some snaps in the game against the Dolphins.
Joining Sanders on the sideline will be both starting safeties Vonn Bell (quad) and Xavier Woods (hamstring), tight end Giovanni Ricci (shoulder) and guard Chandler Zavala (neck). Zavala, Ricci and Bell were injured in Week 5, similarly to Sanders, while Woods has been sidelined since suffering his injury in Week 3 against the Seahawks.
According to Reich, practice-squad safety Matthias Farley will be promoted to the game-day roster to start opposite fill-in starter Sam Franklin. Reich also said rookie Jammie Robinson will serve as depth behind Franklin and Farley, who played for the head coach with the Indianapolis Colts in 2018.
Chandler Zavala rejoins team, remains out
Zavala, who was transported to the hospital after a scary moment in the first quarter of the team’s game last weekend against the Detroit Lions, was back with the team this week as it prepared for the Dolphins, but is still unable to play.
According to the Panthers, Zavala sustained a neck injury against the Lions. He remained alert and had movement in all of his extremities and, after undergoing evaluations at a Detroit hospital, he returned to Charlotte on the Panthers’ team flight.
Zavala, a rookie out of N.C. State, fell to the ground on a first-quarter run at Ford Field. He then laid face-down and motionless for minutes; about a dozen members of the Panthers’ medical staff rushed onto the field to his aide.
Burns and Brown questionable
Pass rusher Brian Burns (ankle), defensive tackle Derrick Brown (knee/ankle) and tight end Ian Thomas (calf) were listed as questionable heading into the matchup. Burns was a full participant in practice on Friday, while Brown was limited. Thomas was a new addition to the injury report on Friday, as he practiced in a limited capacity.
Guard Austin Corbett (knee) will remain on the physically unable to perform list this week. However, tight end Stephen Sullivan (hip) could be activated from the injured reserve ahead of the game against Miami after practicing in a full capacity throughout the week. Sullivan was listed as “questionable” entering the matchup.
Here is the final Panthers injury report for Week 6:
▪ Out: S Xavier Woods (hamstring), RB Miles Sanders (shoulder), S Vonn Bell (quad), TE Giovanni Ricci (shoulder), G Chandler Zavala (neck), G Austin Corbert (PUP — knee).
▪ Questionable: OLB Brian Burns (ankle), DT Derrick Brown (ankle/knee), TE Ian Thomas (calf), TE Stephen Sullivan (hip — IR).
This story was originally published October 13, 2023 at 1:04 PM.
