South Carolina’s T.J. Sanders was one of the more effective pass-rushing defensive tackles in the nation in 2024. He had a predraft visit with the Green Bay Packers on Friday.
T.J. Sanders’ biography at South Carolina notes he “also played basketball.”
He did more than “also” play basketball. At Marion (S.C.) High School, he was an all-state basketball player as a junior and the state’s defensive player of the year in football as a senior.
“I was a hooper. I wasn’t touching no football,” the NFL-bound defensive tackle, who had a predraft visit with the Green Bay Packers on Friday, according to a source, said at South Carolina’s pro day. “One minute you think you are going to the NBA and the next thing you are doing things for the NFL. Crazy how your life can change in the blink of an eye. I am just thankful and taking it all in. … Extremely blessed.”
That Sanders was scheduled to visit was first reported by Easton Butler.
Sanders played football in middle school but gave it up to focus on his “hoop dreams.” Marion’s high school coach, Randall Slate, persuaded him to try football again as a junior.
He quickly parlayed that into a scholarship at South Carolina. After redshirting as a freshman in 2021 and playing as a reserve in 2022, Sanders was third-team all-SEC in 2023 and earned some All-American accolades in 2024, when he had four sacks and seven tackles for losses.
With time and reps came polish. With polish came confidence.
“Honestly,” he told Steelers Depot at the Senior Bowl, “there was a time where I wasn’t as confident in my moves. I was honestly just more of a put-my-hands-on-the-guy and just trying my best to bull (rush). And I wasn’t seeing much success in that and knew I was able to pass rush, and I had a few moves for my repertoire but just wasn’t confident. Confidence is a huge part of football.”
At the Scouting Combine, he measured 6-foot-3 7/8 and 297 pounds with 33 1/8-inch arms and posted outstanding numbers in the vertical jump (31.5 inches) and broad jump (9 feet, 4 inches). At pro day, he was up to 305 pounds and reportedly ran a 4.95 in the 40. Added together, it gave him a Relative Athletic Score of 9.38.
“Doing some of these drills I have been doing, but just on a bigger stage,” Sanders said. “Just having confidence in yourself. Really was the easiest part. The Combine was a great experience, being out there with a bunch of guys you heard of and heard about. Definitely cool deal.
“Just been receiving feedback from NFL teams and things I have to work on and can be better. It is surreal being in front of head coaches and general managers in the league. I’m thankful for the opportunity to take part in it.”
Defensive tackle is a key need for the Packers. T.J. Slaton, who started all 34 games the past two seasons, signed with the Bengals in free agency. Veteran stalwart Kenny Clark is coming off a down season and former first-round pick Devonte Wyatt could be a free agent next offseason, depending on whether the Packers trigger the fifth-year option.
Sanders is considered a Day 2 prospect. He is the No. 36 overall prospect at Pro Football Focus and the No. 66 prospect, according to NFL.com’s Eric Edholm.
“Heavy-handed late bloomer who can grow into a steady contributor with a year or two of seasoning,” Edholm wrote. “Sanders isn’t a plus athlete, but he has the requisite strength to handle blue-collar trench duty.”
According to PFF, 162 draft-eligible defensive tackles played at least 200 pass-rushing snaps in 2024. Sanders ranked second in pass-rush productivity, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pass-rushing snap. The only player better was Oregon’s Derrick Harmon, who led the nation’s defensive tackles in pressures. Sanders also was 11th in pass-rush win rate.
“I feel like it has helped my pass rush the most,” Sanders said of his basketball background at the Combine. “A lot of my inside moves come from me thinking about a crossover. Just getting from one point to the other. Just trying to beat your man off a simple move.”