Carolina Panthers WR Xavier Legette answers for his lack of production

Legette takes responsbility for his drought to begin the 2025 season

Arizona Cardinals cornerback Denzel Burke (29) makes a defensive stop against Carolina Panthers receiver Xavier Legette (17) at State Farm Stadium on Sept 14, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Carolina Panthers have gotten off to yet another 0-2 start. As always there's more than one culprit, but the biggest problem seems to be a lack of reliable producers on offense. Trading their best wide receiver just before the season began now seems like a pretty bad idea, but they probably never wold have conisdered it if they knew Xavier Legette was going to bomb like he has.

Legette made the wrong kind of NFL history last week in Arizona, totaling -2 yards on eight targets, bringing his season total to just eight receivng yards through two games.

While the production is inexcusable - especially for a first-round pick - at least Legette isn't ducking responsibility. Here's what he had to say to reporters following Thursday's practice.

Xavier Legette answers for awful start

#Panthers WR Xavier Legette answers questions about the first two weeks of the season.

He says he’s been dealing with the mental side of the game and he expects things to turn around.

He said he dealt with a similar skid at South Carolina: pic.twitter.com/yqc1GP77yG

— Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) September 18, 2025

It would be easier to feel bad for Legette if he hadn't spent the entire offseason being such a visible social media sensation. That doesn't mean that he didn't put in the time training and working on his game, but it also makes for really, really bad optics.

Legette is an exceptional athlete - on film it appears that he's just not motivated and not focused - such as the infuriating way he dawdled back to the line of scrimmage on one key play against the Cardinals.

It's on Legette to break out of this funk - but we're at the point that if it doesn't happen this week head coach Dave Canales should bench him - and see if it has a positive effect the way it did on Bryce Young last season.

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