Carolina Panthers DVOA, Stats, & NFL Rankings

San Francisco 49ers kicker Matthew Wright will look to make a good impression in his 2024 debut in Seattle on Thursday night. Wright was signed early in the week after starting kicker Jake Moody suffered a high ankle sprain on Sunday against the Cardinals. Originally signed out of the University of Central Florida in 2020, Wright has bounced around the league, including multiple stints with Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Carolina, and San Francisco. His most productive year was 2021 with Jacksonville when he played in 14 games. Wright owns a career field goal percentage of 85.1, hitting 40 of 47 attempts. His career-long is 59 yards. While Wright is not as talented as Moody, the biggest factor in choosing a fantasy kicker is the strength of the offense, so for fantasy managers who see San Francisco spending a lot of time in Seahawks territory, Wright is a decent option. That said, there are probably safer bets available in most leagues.

Carolina Panthers tight end Tommy Tremble (concussion) was held out of the first practice of the week on Wednesday. Tremble suffered a scary-looking concussion in the Week 5 loss to the Chicago Bears and is in the league's concussion protocol this week. He still has two more days to improve, but just based on how he looked on Sunday, it would be a surprise if he suited up this weekend against the division-rival Atlanta Falcons. Tremble being inactive in Week 6 would open up more playing time for rookie Ja'Tavion Sanders, but fantasy managers should be able to find better TE2 streaming options. Ian Thomas (calf) practiced in full on Wednesday and could come off Injured Reserve to play this weekend, but he, too, should be avoided in fantasy. In four games in 2024, Tremble has only seven receptions for 59 yards. He's off the fantasy radar.

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Xavier Legette (shoulder) exited the Week 5 game against the Chicago Bears with a shoulder injury, but he is practicing on Wednesday to begin Week 6 preparation. The rookie first-round pick out of South Carolina had the best performance of his career in Week 4, catching six of his 10 targets for 66 yards and a touchdown. Carolina's offense looked strong under quarterback Andy Dalton against the Raiders and Bengals before being held to just 10 points in the blowout loss to Chicago. If Legette can suit up on Sunday, he'll face an Atlanta Falcons defense that has surrendered the 12th-most fantasy points per game to wideouts. With Adam Thielen (hamstring) on the Injured Reserve list, Legette is a fine flex option, but he has a WR4/WR5 outlook.UPDATE: Legette practiced in full on Wednesday.

The San Francisco 49ers signed veteran kicker Matthew Wright on Tuesday to replace the injured Jake Moody (ankle), who is expected to miss multiple weeks after suffering a high-ankle sprain in the Week 5 loss to the division-rival Arizona Cardinals, according to a source. Wright will make his debut with the 49ers this Thursday night against the division-rival Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Before signing him, the 49ers also worked out kickers Randy Bullock, Riley Patterson, Anders Carlson and Matt Coghlin. For now, fantasy managers that were riding Moody will have to go in another direction. The 28-year-old Wright is unlikely to be as reliable as Moody, but he could at least be a viable streaming option in this strong Niners offense. Wright has a career 85.1% success rate on his 47 field-goal attempts in his four seasons in the NFL with the Steelers, Jaguars, Chiefs and Panthers.

Carolina Panthers tight end Tommy Tremble (concussion) is officially in the league's concussion protocol on Monday after suffering a head injury in the team's Week 5 loss to the Chicago Bears on Sunday. Tremble was knocked out cold by Bears safety Jaquan Brisker after a catch on Sunday, and just by the way it looked, we would not be surprised if Tremble was unavailable to play in Week 6 against the division-rival Atlanta Falcons this weekend. He has only seven catches on nine targets for 59 yards and no touchdowns in four games this year and isn't a realistic fantasy tight end in most leagues when he's healthy. If Tremble is forced to miss any time, rookie Ja'Tavion Sanders would see an elevated role in the passing game in Carolina, although he, too, wouldn't really move the fantasy needle as anything more than a deep TE2 sleeper.