Two rookie standouts reshaped the early-season buzz from Cleveland’s 30-10 win over Carolina. Shedeur Sanders flashed quarterback viability with two touchdown passes, hinting at a potential late-season spark for fantasy squads roaming Browns’ depth charts. Tetairoa McMillan, the Panthers’ No. 8 overall pick, showed off perimeter juice with two grabs for 43 yards, including a 30-yard connection that kickstarted Carolina’s lone scoring drive. Bryce Young trusted his newest big-target, while Panthers coach Dave Canales praised McMillan’s ability to stretch the field and make big plays. Carolina’s offense looks to leverage Young’s growth and McMillan’s deep-threat profile as 2025 approaches, giving fantasy players a quartet of intriguing upside options in a pass-happy league.

Young’s late-2024 surge—10 total touchdowns, zero turnovers in the final three games—paired with a taller No. 1 receiver signals a vertical case for Carolina’s passing attack. McMillan’s Arizona All-American pedigree—84 catches for 1,319 yards as a senior and a program-record 3,423 career yards—feeds the narrative that he can be more than a complementary threat. The result is a Panthers offense that could trend toward explosive plays, elevating the fantasy ceiling for Young, McMillan, and Carolina’s pass-catching corps as preseason continues.

In Cleveland, Sanders’ edge and confidence provide a glimmer of a hidden gem in dynasty formats, while the Panthers’ rookie class injects a path to upside for 2025. The takeaway: monitor how these rookies continue to carve roles, because the early indicators point to a quarterback-friendly environment with multiple breakout possibilities for fantasy managers ready to take calculated swings in dynasty and late-redraft formats.