With Tetairoa McMillan beside him, Xavier Legette trying to turn the page on tough 2024
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After pulling in a pass on a crossing route during a team portion of Tuesday's practice, Carolina Panthers second-year receiver Xavier Legette celebrated by finding Tetairoa McMillan and tossing him the ball across the field. If Legette feels threatened by the arrival of a top-10 receiver, he has a funny way of showing it.
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'We're trying to win games,' Legette said after the Panthers' first OTA session. 'Any time you can add a masterpiece like that to what we're trying to build, it's great.'
Legette's rookie season was anything but a masterpiece. The former South Carolina standout fought through several injuries, was plagued by dropped passes and at times seemed to lose his infectious energy while acting as his own toughest critic.
But Legette is in better spirits these days. He's healthy following offseason foot surgery, has a better grasp of the offense and had a big time attending the Kentucky Derby on the NFL's tab. And he's thrown out the welcome mat for McMillan, the All-American from Arizona whom the Panthers drafted at No. 8 — a selection Legette was tipped off on.
'I already knew that was gonna happen,' he said. 'We had talks throughout the building. He was an option, but they had some defensive players as options as well.'
Some interesting stuff from Xavier Legette today. Says he's working on making more hands catches after last year's drops. Also doesn't view Tetairoa McMillan and himself as a 1st and 2nd WR situation. pic.twitter.com/ZgazLDr8F5
— Joe Person (@josephperson) May 27, 2025
Most of the pre-draft discussions surrounding the Panthers centered on defensive players. But according to a source with knowledge of the situation, the team was comfortable taking three players with the eighth pick — McMillan, Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker and Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham, who went fifth to Cleveland.
McMillan told reporters that quarterback Bryce Young had lobbied the Panthers' decision-makers on his behalf after the two had worked together during the offseason at a QB training facility in southern California, near where both went to high school.
While saying the McMillan pick was 'music to my ears,' Young downplayed his role in the selection. He said he also was asked about other players with whom he had background.
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However it went down, Young and second-year coach Dave Canales are glad to have both of the young wideouts. Canales said he can 'feel the joy' emanating from Legette and McMillan on the practice field.
'Even in routes on air, they'll catch a ball, they'll put it away, burst. And then they're looking for the other one, they're throwing it across the field, playing catch,' Canales said. 'For two young guys that we hope and expect to be here for a long time, it's about enjoying it. It's about having fun. This game is meant to be fun. And they're also wired the right way where they're grinding, they're working hard and they're studying it and it means something to them.'
Legette arrived with less fanfare than McMillan — at least from a football perspective — after the Panthers traded with Buffalo to take him with the final pick of the first round last year. Fans and teammates got a kick out of Legette's unique accent and rural South Carolina roots, which were on display in December when he brought leftover raccoon meat into the locker room for a post-practice snack.
But behind the laughs and tales from Mullins, S.C., was a frustrated athlete who was hard on himself after some untimely drops, none costlier than the potential, game-winning touchdown pass that went through his hands in the final minute at Philadelphia.
Legette, who started only one season at South Carolina, tied for 13th in the NFL with seven drops, with a catch percentage (58.33) that was the 22nd-lowest. When he returned to Bank of America Stadium for offseason workouts, Legette met with offensive coordinator Brad Idzik and receivers coach Rob Moore to discuss his rookie campaign. He's working on making more hands catches in Year 2 rather than corralling passes off his body.
'Just mainly the drops I had,' Legette said of the discussion with his coaches. 'Me getting open, that wasn't a problem. It was just honing in to really catching the ball on the dropped passes.'
Legette had the 16th-worst separation average in the league last year, so there's work to be done there, too. That's where McMillan can help.
'I think with T-Mac coming into the room, it's just options. It opens things up and it creates a little bit of balance, where the field doesn't tilt one way or the other,' Canales said. 'So you have two guys who can make it happen outside and that's a good thing.'
Legette sees it similarly.
'I feel like it's gonna be a problem either way,' he said. 'I wouldn't necessarily say it's a 1 or a 2. I feel like either side they look at, they're gonna have to deal with both sides.'
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Legette is no longer dealing with the health issues he was 'gutting through' last season, as Moore put it. Doctors inserted a screw to fix an issue with his foot, while he rehabbed a wrist injury that seemed to play a role in his drop against the Eagles. Legette was inactive for a Week 16 win against Arizona — the only game he missed — with a hip injury.
'I'm feeling pretty good. I feel like I'm trending in the right direction,' Legette said. 'My body's feeling great. I just wanna make this year better than last year. That's my main focus.'
Young knows what it's like to struggle early as a high draft pick. And he was impressed with how Legette handled a trying season.
'Especially rookie year, him coming in a first-round pick, it's a lot. He obviously got thrown in the fire. As a team there were a lot of ups and downs,' Young said. 'But for him to be able to — no matter whatever the outside noise was, no matter what happened on Sunday — for him to work the way he did, come in day in and day out. You guys only get to see Sunday and maybe a couple practices.
'But throughout the locker room, he always had a great attitude, great energy. Still does. He's someone that really just brings up the room. We have all the confidence in the world in him. He means a lot to us as a unit and I'm excited to watch him keep growing.'
(Photo of Legette: Matt Kelley / Getty Images)
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