ESPN draft expert warns of potential problem with Panthers' Tet McMillan at NFL level

The Carolina Panthers defied all the indications and mock drafts by picking Tetairoa McMillan eighth overall. Not only did they not trade back (even after taking calls from teams who wanted to move up), they didn't take Jalon Walker like everyone thought. They went with a wide receiver instead of a defender.

That pick has been analyzed as one of the most surprising from the first round, and ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper said it was one of the four most questionable picks in round one (others being the Cowboys getting Tyler Booker, Kelvin Banks to the Saints, and Kenneth Grant to the Dolphins).

Kiper began by saying he thinks McMillan is a good player and makes for a very promising young WR core in Carolina. He praised his contested-catch ability and even compared him to Drake London, also the eighth overall pick back in his draft class.

Apr 24, 2025; Green Bay, WI, USA; Arizona Wildcats wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan is selected by the Carolina Panthers as the number eight pick in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

But Kiper has one big issue with McMillan and it's why he's not sure the value was there for Carolina: separation. "The knock on McMillan is that he doesn't always get consistent separation. That could be a problem in the NFL against elite cornerbacks," Kiper said.

He also wondered why the Panthers didn't go defense with the pick after having such an awful year last year, but the separation issue is why he thinks McMillan wasn't the smartest choice there. And for what it's worth, if separation does continue to plague McMillan, then that's a big problem.

The Panthers' pass-catchers over the last two years have been dreadful at that part of the game. Bryce Young has consistently had no one who could get truly open, often having to throw into tight windows. Now McMillan can make those contested catches in the tight windows, but it does beg the question of whether or not Matthew Golden, a better separator, would have been the better pick to diversify their offense a little bit.

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