“I’m Excited To See What The Future Holds”: Panthers Rookie Tetairoa McMillan Embraces Big Role

Wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan #4 (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)

Tetairoa McMillan will enter his rookie season with the Carolina Panthers with high expectations.

The No. 8 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft is expected to be the Panthers’ lead receiving option with franchise quarterback Bryce Young. It wouldn’t surprise anyone to see that as early as this season.

The 6-foot-4, 225-pounder could easily emerge as one of the top red zone receiving weapons in the league, something Young and the Panthers desperately need considering Carolina finished 23rd in points per game and 16th in passing touchdowns.

“I’m just looking forward to making this team better,” says McMillan in a one-on-one interview with RG. “Just trying to learn the playbook, trying to build chemistry, trying to build relationships with the people in the building, my teammates, my coaches. At the end of the day, we want to win games, so that’s my main goal right now. Whatever comes with it, it’s a win-win situation. I’m just excited to see what the future holds.”

What will aid in McMillan’s development is playing alongside a veteran receiver in Adam Thielen. Thielen is returning for his 12th season at the age of 35, which may very well be the last year of the two-time Pro Bowl receiver’s career.

Thielen has already said great things about McMillan, saying he’s “that guy” that has “phenomenal body control.”

“It’s been a blessing just having Adam in the room, he’s the oldest receiver in the league,” says McMillan.

“Just having that vet in our room not only helps me, but all the other young guys in this room. He has years of experience that we don’t have. Any chance that I get to steal any wisdom, any knowledge that he has for me, I’m going to do it because it’s only going to make me a better player. I’m super fortunate to have Adam in our room, for sure.”

A Deep and Diverse Receiver Room

The 22-year-old McMillan joins a Panthers receiving corps that’s probably easily the biggest in the league. Thielen is a tall receiver himself at 6-foot-2, but the rest of Carolina’s receivers such as the 6-foot-3 Xavier Legette and Jalen Coker round out the depth chart. The only smaller receiver is the 5-foot-10 Hunter Renfrow, who was a Pro Bowl receiver with the Las Vegas Raiders back in 2021 and is trying to make a comeback.

“The receiver room is not usually like that,” says McMillan to RG of the Panthers’ big receiving corps. “But we also have a happy medium. We have a lot of smaller guys that can be shifty, that can blaze past you, that can do all these crafty, all these good routes. They have a little swag to them. We also have Hunter Renfrow here, which is a good addition for us.”

McMillan speaks very highly of Renfrow and the type of routes that he’s able to run and says he’ll definitely be “stealing” some of his, Thielen and Legette’s moves this season.

“Adam Thielen, Xavier, there’s a lot of dudes in this room that I’ll definitely be stealing some moves from,” says McMillan while laughing. “Don’t worry. I got it.”

It’s a mixed assortment of receivers, featuring a highly touted one in McMillan, who was a consensus All-American during the 2024 season. He’s flanked by a former Pro Bowl receiver in Thielen who’s entering the final stage of his NFL career alongside second-year receivers in Legette and Coker and a former star receiver in Renfrow trying to make a comeback.

Looking Ahead

Unsurprisingly, McMillan says his favorite wide receiver of all time is another big-framed one in Arizona Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald also had a similar frame to McMillan at 6-foot-3 and 218 pounds.

“There’s nobody that I really modeled my game or tried to be like,” says McMillan. “But one dude who is my favorite football player of all time is Larry Fitzgerald.”

The bottom line is, it’s clear the Panthers are trying to upgrade the receiving corps as Young enters a pivotal third season as the team’s starting quarterback. McMillan — who matched up against Young in high school back in 2019 — says that the former No. 1 overall pick will “light it up” this season.

One receiver who sort of paved the way for McMillan is Los Angeles Rams Pro Bowl wideout Puka Nacua. Nacua is two years older than McMillan and is also 6-foot-3 and of Polynesian background. During a recent interview with Nacua, he had great things to say about McMillan going into the draft, saying he’s a “big fan” of his game.

The Panthers are actually playing against the Rams this season at the end of November, something that McMillan is looking forward to.

“He’s putting on for our Polynesian people,” says McMillan of Nacua. “There’s not so many receivers that are Polynesians. We don’t really play skill positions. If it was a skill position, it would be quarterback. Just him being able to do, be that role model for us, that pioneer for us. It’s a blessing. I’m so excited to see what the future holds for him. I’m looking forward to playing against him this year. I’m looking forward to seeing him on the field.”

While McMillan is looking forward to playing against Nacua during the regular season, it’s not an opposing team’s cornerback that he’s looking forward to scoring a touchdown against. He’s actually most looking forward to scoring a touchdown on his teammate, Pro Bowl cornerback Jaycee Horn.

“He’s one of the best corners of the league,” says McMillan of Horn. “I know that me going against him, giving me his best every day is only going to prepare me for everything that’s going to get thrown at me in the season. I feel like Jaycee is one of those guys I can do it on. I’m not going to be surprised coming into the season, just getting something different, because I’m playing against it every day in practice. That matchup I’m definitely looking forward to, for sure.”