Panthers WR Tetairoa McMillan named 2025 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of Year

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2026-02-06

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Carolina’s top draft pick has earned the league’s highest honor for offensive rookies.

Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan was voted the 2025 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year at NFL Honors on Thursday in San Francisco.

McMillan recorded 41 of 50 first-place votes to run away with the award, beating out Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (five first-place votes), Giants QB Jaxson Dart (one), Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson (one) and Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, his fellow finalists. Seahawks offensive lineman Grey Zabel received the other two first-place votes.

The eighth-overall selection of the 2025 NFL Draft, McMillan was an essential piece of Carolina’s re-emergence.

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The 22-year-old started all 17 games for the Panthers and quickly became Bryce Young‘s most reliable target, producing 70 receptions for 1,014 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. McMillan more than doubled the next leading WR in Carolina and his contributions as a rookie helped pace a Panthers club that won the NFC South and ended a seven-season postseason drought.

McMillan’s season totals accounted for 30.7% of Carolina’s receiving yards in 2025, which was the sixth-highest percentage in the NFL in 2025 and the third-highest by a rookie on a playoff team since the 1970 merger, per NFL Research.

With a graceful route-running capability, reliable hands and a 6-foot-5 frame, McMillan served as Young’s field-stretching target, averaging 14.5 yards per reception (27 of his 70 catches went for 16-plus yards, which led all rookies). While he consistently produced each start, McMillan’s breakout performance came in Week 11 after notching eight receptions for 130 yards and two TDs in an overtime win against the Falcons, all of which stand as his single-game highs.

The Panthers appear to have struck gold with McMillan, a University of Arizona product whose crowning achievement on Thursday only heightens his promise in Carolina.

McMillan is the sixth wideout to win AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year since the turn of the century, joining Garrett Wilson (2022), Ja’Marr Chase (2021), Odell Beckham (2014), Percy Harvin (2009) and Anquan Boldin (2003).

He’s also just the second Panthers player to earn the honor in franchise history, joining Cam Newton (2011).