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Tetairoa McMillan, WR

Height: 6'5"
Weight: 212 pounds
Age: 21 years old (April 5, 2003)

Arizona 

YearReceptionsYardsTouchdowns

2022

39

702

8

2023

90

1402

10

2024*

69

1136

7

* 2024 season still ongoing 


Pros:

  • Prototypical size for X WR
    At 6'5", McMillan possesses incredible size for a team looking to add an X WR to its offense. Once he gets into an NFL building, I would expect to see him add a bit more weight in muscle to fully fill out his frame. 

  • Ability to line up outside or in the slot
    You don't always see WRs with MicMillan's size slide inside to the slot. But he has spent time in the slot in each of his three collegiate seasons. And in the NFL, multiple offenses like utilizing a big-bodied WR or a TE in the slot for multiple formations.
     
  • Trustworthy hands
    During his three-year career, he has only been credited with nine total drops, and PFF has him at a 4.7 drop %. As a big-bodied X WR, QBs are going to want to trust McMillan to be their 50-50 ball WR at the pro level. And he has the production to point towards him excelling in that role. 

  • Football IQ
    One of my favorite traits in McMillan's film is how comfortable he is adjusting his route to find openings against zone coverage to assist his QB. When watching young WRs adjust to the NFL level, it seems most take multiple years to get comfortable enough to add this to their game. But with McMillan, an NFL team is getting a WR who will do it from day one of his career. 

Cons:

  • Takes time for him to build up his speed
    I think McMillan has solid speed for his size. Many project he will run a sub 4.60 40-yard dash. The issue is his speed doesn't really show up until he is in the middle of his route. This hurts his get-off at the line of scrimmage, and it could hurt his ability to be the consistent deep ball WR teams will want him to develop into.
     
  • Struggles against press coverage
    As you read above, his get-off at the line of scrimmage is an issue, and something NFL defenses could do to make his life even harder is by assigning a defender in press coverage. If you can knock him off his route and make him take even longer to get into the long-developing routes, his team may assign him defenses that could neutralize him as an option in the passing game early in his career. 

  • Not a reliable blocker
    At his size, you would like to assume you are getting a WR who excels as a blocker in the run game. That hasn't been the story for McMillan, who struggles in that regard. You would like to be able to play your top WRs on all three downs. But early in his career, I could see whichever team drafts him pulling him off the field for run plays while he develops in that area. 

Player Evaluation: 

Every NFL offense that doesn't have a true X WR is looking for one. And in this year's draft, every team searching for it should have McMillan ranked high, if not at the top of their board. You can't teach a WR to have his elite measurables and incredible production go along with it, making him one of the top WRs in this year's draft class. His overall draft position probably comes down to the style of WR a team is targeting, but he should certainly hear his name called in the top half of the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. 

Player Comparison:

Pro Comp: Drake London 
A player that I think McMillan's game reminds me of is Atlanta Falcons WR Drake London. London was a three-year player at USC. London didn't have McMillan's complete body of work in terms of production. London only had one season with over 1,000 yards in college but was able to use that season and a strong draft cycle to get drafted eighth overall in the 2022 NFL Draft. 

The similarities between London and McMilIan start with their size and athletic profile. Both were listed at 6'5" in college and seem to have similar speed on tape. They are also both big-bodied WRs that their college teams asked to line up in the slot at a decent rate. London's career didn't start as fast as you would like out of a top-10 pick, but the QB play in Atlanta was arguably the worst of any team during his first three seasons. And we are seeing how great he can get during his first year with Kirk Cousins under center. 


A to Z Sports Rankings: 

A to Z Big Board Ranking: #6 overall, #1 wide receiver 

A to Z Draft Grade: 9.62

Draft projection: Early First Round