NFL Reveals Which Rookies Will Lose Award to Tetairoa McMillan

Carolina Panthers rookie Tetairoa McMillan had the perfect storm this year, at least in terms of coming away with meaningful hardware in his first NFL season.

First, the QB class was underwhelming. The best ones, like Jaxson Dart and Tyler Shough, only played part of the season, and it wasn't enough, in all likelihood, to take the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

Second, the overall skill-position player class didn't have incredible seasons. They were good, but not great. Third, early favorites like Ashton Jeanty and Travis Hunter underperformed (and Hunter missed a huge chunk of the season).

Still, there are officially four other finalists for the award. They're going to lose to McMillan, but here they are nonetheless.

NFL reveals those who will lose ROY to Tetairoa McMillan

All NFL award finalists have been revealed, and Tetairoa McMillan is the only Panthers player or coach who could come away with an award. Fortunately, it looks like he absolutely will.

The other four finalists are New York Giants QB Jaxson Dart, New England Patriots RB Treveyon Henderson, New Orleans Saints QB Tyler Shough, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Emeka Egbuka.

Your Offensive Rookie of the Year Finalists 🏆#NFLHonors pic.twitter.com/NtYiDEfQpr
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) January 22, 2026

There's not a stronger case for any of them over McMillan. Dart was exciting, but he made just 12 starts and missed time with injuries. Shough would probably have the edge over Dart, but he only made nine starts.

Henderson was incredibly quiet for a lot of the season, and he finished with less than 1,000 yards as a running back. Emeka Egbuka probably won't finish second because of the insane QB bias the NFL has, but he's the one who has the best argument over McMillan.

He finished second in receiving yards among first-year players to McMillan, seven catches shy of McMillan's total, one fewer touchdown, and 76 yards less. Egbuka was off to a hot start and cooled off, though, indicating that it was more a usage thing since Mike Evans and Chris Godwin were hurt.

McMillan had 70 catches, 1,014 yards, and seven touchdowns. He did that, with all due respect, a passing game that was in flux week to week. Bryce Young and Dave Canales both struggled at times, but McMillan thrived all the same.

The Panthers star is the heavy favorite across the board:

-350 on BetMGM
-1000 on DraftKings
-375 on Caesar's
-20000 on FanDuel
-2500 on BetRivers

Congratulations to the other finalists, but they're not going to win.

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