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NFL insider highlights key stat for Tetairoa McMillan in All-Rookie race

Carolina Panthers’ wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan has been a steady performer. He could also wind up earning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2025.
Russell Baxter|
Nov 2, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (4) runs the ball after making a reception against the Green Bay Packers during the game at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Tork Mason-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images
Nov 2, 2025; Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (4) runs the ball after making a reception against the Green Bay Packers during the game at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Tork Mason-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images | Tork Mason-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

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Carolina Panthers

Nine weeks down. Nine weeks to go

Dane Brugler of The Athletic released his NFL midseason All-Rookie team for 2025. “There is still much to learn about this year’s NFL rookie class,” stated Brugler. “But hitting pause at the midway point to reflect on the first half is an interesting exercise to determine which rookies have been the best at their positions thus far.”

Let’s cut to the chase and go right to wide receiver. Brugler’s selection is Tampa Bay’s Emeka Egbuka, who leads the team in catches (34) and receiving yards (562) while snaring five of quarterback Baker Mayfield’s 13 touchdown passes. Right on the heels of his cleats is the Carolina Panthers’ top pass-catcher this season is rangy Tetairoa McMillan.

“Though Egbuka holds onto the top spot,” explained Brugler, “McMillan isn’t far behind—and it wouldn’t be surprising if he made up the gap during the second half of the season. The Panthers rookie has 41 receptions for 558 yards and two touchdowns through nine games. The key number with McMillan, though, is 82.9: the percentage of his receptions that have resulted in a first down or touchdown.”

Tetairoa McMillan
Oct 19, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan (4) stiff arms New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner (1) in the second quarter at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Brugler also added a very interesting statistic that bears noting. “Another key number: four, which is how many defensive pass interference penalties he’s drawn, most among the rookies.”

McMillan is one of five Panthers’ players with a pair of TD receptions. Meanwhile, he is far and away the most productive pass-catcher on Dave Canales’s squad this season. He’s more than doubled Xavier Legette’s 20 receptions, and more than tripled Legette’s 181 receiving yards.

By all indications, Egbuka and McMillan are the NFL’s best two rookie wide receivers. If both can remain healthy, it will be fascinating to see them in the same game twice when the Panthers host the Buccaneers in Week 16, then travel to Tampa in Week 18.

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Russell Baxter
RUSSELL BAXTER

Russell S. Baxter has been writing and researching the game of football for more than 40 years, and on numerous platforms. That includes television, as he spent more than two decades at ESPN, and was part of shows that garnered five Emmy Awards. He also spent the 2015 NFL season with Thursday Night Football on CBS/NFLN.