ESPN details how Tetairoa McMillan's ceiling could rise against Packers defense

The rise of great athletes is almost never a straight line going up. Every rookie goes through ups and downs during their first season as pros, no matter how talented or highly-touted they might be coming into the league.

That's certainly been the case for Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, who didn't score his fist touchdown until his sixth game.

Even though he didn't score McMillan had arguably his best game yet last week against the Bills, posting seven catches on 10 targets for 99 yards.

Along the way there have also been duds against the Falcons (3/8 for 38 yards) and the Jets (3/5 for 33 yards), but the further along the path he goes the more we should see big games like last week's performance against Buffalo.

According to an analysis by ESPN, McMillan has a real chance to explode on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers at LambeauField.

ESPN on Tetairoa McMillan vs. Packers

"Panthers WR Tetairoa Mcmillan finished with a season-high seven receptions and tied his season high with 10 targets last week. He has averaged 12.5 fantasy points per game, but his ceiling could rise against a Packers defense that has struggled against outside receivers over the past month."

If the Packers do have a weakness, it's at cornerback, where they no longer have Jaire Alexander and as of yet nobody else has emerged as a lockdown defender in coverage.

That means McMillan may have a real chance to go off, depending on how the Packers want to play him. Given the choice, we would probably embrace bracketing McMillan with a corner and a safety and force somebody else to make plays.

So far the Panthers don't have an established WR2 yet. Xavier Legette has only had one good game all season, Hunter Renfrow is out of the rotation, Jalen Coker is still getting his feet under him after missing the first six games and Jimmy Horn Jr. just isn't getting enough targets to prove whether or not he could step up into that role.

One emerging possibility is rookie tight end Mitchell Evans, who currently has the highest PFF grade in the league at his position. Evans has only been targeted 11 times, but he's caught nine of them and has scored two touchdowns. He was totally shut out last week againt the Bills, though.

Until somebody else proves they can consistently step up and take some of the load off McMillan's shoulders, opponents are crazy not to focus their efforts on containing No. 4.

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