The Carolina Panthers selected Tetairoa McMillan with their first round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to give young quarterback Bryce Young a legitimate go to No. 1 wide receiver.
McMillan is off to a good start, as he entered Sunday ranked No. 15 in the NFL in receiving yards. However, one thing was missing and that was his first NFL touchdown, and he changed that by scoring in the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys.
Young connected with him from 19 yards out to tie the game back up at 10.
For McMillan, it was also a big opportunity to make amends for a mistake earlier in the game. Young looked for him earlier in the game, but McMillan bobbled the ball and it ended up being intercepted by Donovan Wilson.
He has gotten things off to a good start this year, as he had at least four catches and 62 yards in every game except the Week 3 win against the Atlanta Falcons. In Week 2, he got his first career 100-yard game in a loss to the Arizona Cardinals
McMillan became a household name in football at Arizona, where he played from 2022-2024. He ended up finishing his three-year career in Tucson with 213 catches for 3,423 yards and 26 touchdowns. The yards are the most in school history, while the touchdowns are third and the catches are fourth.
Travis Hunter was the first receiver taken last year at No. 2, with the Panthers selecting McMillan at No. 8. The expectations were high for McMillan, and so far he has given the Panthers what they want.
Carolina has been looking for a true No. 1 wide receiver for quite some time, since Steve Smith Jr.left Carolina after the 2013 season.
The Panthers still aren’t close yet to being an NFC contender, but they look like they have finally found a franchise level receiver. There are many days in the NFL that a player won’t forget, and Sunday figures to be that for McMillan.
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