Is it time to be concerned about Texas TE Ja’Tavion Sanders?

Among the breakout players to watch for Texas football and second-year head coach Steve Sarkisian this spring is the former elite five-star Denton-Ryan recruit and sophomore tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders. In a spot where he could earn first-team reps heading into the fall if he impresses the coaches in spring ball, Sanders has a critical few weeks ahead.

Sark, special teams coordinator/tight ends coach Jeff Banks and the Longhorns are looking to replace a lot of departed experience/production in the tight end room this year. And one of the players that the coaching staff is looking to rise to the occasion this offseason is Sanders.

Sanders is expected to become one of the more potent and gifted tight ends in the Big 12 when he starts to fulfill his massive potential. The problem is, though, that we haven’t really seen him get the opportunity to show us what he can do in any significant stretch of game action or even getting first-team reps in practice.

Last season, Sanders was mostly buried on the tight end depth chart behind the likes of senior Cade Brewer and junior Jared Wiley. He only got 28 snaps at tight end last season, compared to more than 1,000 combined between Wiley and Brewer.

In fact, even freshman tight end Gunnar Helm got roughly twice as many snaps at the position last fall compared to Sanders.

So, why was Sanders buried on the depth chart last season despite coming in with so much hype?

And how can Sanders prove himself to get more game reps moving forward?

First and foremost, it’s easy to see why some Texas fans might be concerned about Sanders’ placement on the depth chart last fall. Texas had ranked in the bottom third of the Big 12 last season in terms of cumulative offensive grade for their tight ends.

Texas seemingly wasn’t getting great tight end play with the likes of Brewer and Wiley leading the way. But the coaching staff still didn’t trust Sanders enough yet as a freshman to help spark the offense at the tight end position last year.

Now is the time to shine for former 5-Star recruit and Texas football TE Ja’Tavion Sanders

Why didn’t the coaching staff trust Sanders last year?

There is one valid reason why Sanders was fourth on the tight end depth chart for most of last season. This is likely due to the fact that Sanders was not recruited as a true tight end coming out of high school. And from what we heard coming out of fall camp last offseason, Sanders was still needing to make big strides in terms of his understanding with the route tree and in blocking schemes.

There are aspects to Sanders’ game where he needed to make strides and get the proper time to develop in Sark’s offensive scheme.

This leads to the point regarding what Sanders needs to do in order to make the strides needed to climb up the depth chart in the tight end room.

If Sanders wants to get consistent first-team reps in spring and fall camp this offseason, he’ll need to prove that he can hold his own blocking for the ground game. And he’ll need to show that he is more consistent in his understanding of the route tree.

Yet, there are some indications that he is starting to get a better feel for this offense in spring ball this offseason. A report from Horns247 last weekend (paid content) indicated that Sanders got the first-team reps with senior tight end Jahleel Billingsley. And it sounds like he’s made strides in his route running and understanding of blocking schemes from what he’s shown in the early stages of spring camp.

It is still early in camp, though, and Sanders will need to continue making strides in the next few weeks this spring. Spring ball will be more critical for Sanders than most other Longhorns players this offseason.

Although, Sanders already looks to be in a position to have a fast rise up the depth chart in the tight end room this year. He’ll need to continue to show his progress this offseason if he wants to make the two-deep heading into the 2022 season, though. Helm and fellow freshman tight end Juan Davis are eager to prove themselves and could take some reps away from Sanders if he slips up at any point of this offseason.

Yet, with Brewer and Wiley both gone this offseason, the opportunity has arrived for Sanders to finally step to the forefront and start making a real impact for this offense. It’s not yet time to press the panic button for Sanders this early on in his collegiate career.

Fans should still wait to pass judgment on Sanders falling short of expectations at least until the 2022 season concludes. If two seasons have passed where Sanders continues to be third or fourth on the tight end depth chart, then it is valid to be concerned about what’s happening with him.

Texas finished up last season with a record of 5-7 (3-6 Big 12), missing out on bowl eligibility for the first time since 2016. Sanders and the Longhorns are set to open up the 2022 regular season on Sep. 3 at home against Louisiana-Monroe.