Tetairoa McMillan got second chance with Panthers after awkward first meeting

Teams tend to put entirely too much importance on the interpersonal skills of prospects head of the NFL draft. You need only look at what happened to Shedeur Sanders - who was ranked the second-best QB in his class but sank to the fifth round because he supposedly interviewed poorly.

It's one thing when you're looking for a potential long-term starting quarterback, who will have to lead people and at least to some extent be the face of your franchise. Even then the social skills element is probably wildly overblown compared to what they offer on the field, and it's even more ridiculous when considering prospects at other positions.

Take Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, for example. During the run-up to the draft there was a time when teams were reportedly put off by an old interview that resurfaced wherein McMillan said that he didn't watch game film in his free time. That turned out to be a big nothing-burger, because the Panthers took him at No. 8 overall and apparently both the Rams and the 49ers tried hard to trade up to that spot in order to get him.

The Panthers were wise to ignore the old interview - as well as an initially awkward meeting with wide receivers coach Rob Moore. The story goes that McMillan came off poorly because he was tired after a long tour of official top-30 visits. According to Albert Breer at Sports Illustrated, Carolina decided to give him another chance to speak with Moore via Zoom and it worked out great.

Great work by the @Panthers. Also further illustrates some stuff we reported right after the draft in April (https://t.co/TMErWXcImg) ... With the Rams and Niners trying to move up to 8.

Both liked Tet McMillan, though I think a move up for SF would've been for Mykel Williams. https://t.co/eVhuv8LvcJ pic.twitter.com/YsDW1Swa4T
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) June 4, 2025

Even if he hadn't come across better in that second interview, it would have been foolish to pass on him in the draft on account of perceived poor social skills.

As other analysts have noted, McMillan is a 6-foot-4 receiver who scored 26 touchdowns over the last three seasons. That's the kind of combo that smart NFL teams are not going to pass on - no matter what they might think about his 40-yard dash time or his interview skills.

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