Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Tetairoa McMillan

Friday, May 2, 12:02 PM

Carolina Panthers veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen said that he talked with his family, and they wanted him to play in 2025. He plans to go through a similar process after this season, which is the final year of his contract. Depending on how the 34-year-old feels and what his family thinks after the 2025 campaign, Thielen could hang up his cleats and retire. He's returning for a third season in Carolina after playing in a career-low 10 games in 2024 due to a hamstring injury. In those 10 games, he caught 48 of his 62 targets for 615 yards and five touchdowns. He should continue to be a trusted weapon for young quarterback Bryce Young out of the slot this year, but the addition of first-round rookie wideout Tetairoa McMillan will surely make Thielen harder to trust as a WR3/flex in fantasy based on volume alone like he was in 2023, when he recorded the third 1,000-yard season of his career on 103 targets.

Tuesday, June 24, 2:20 PM

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan has looked like a player deserving of the No. 8 overall pick so far in his first NFL offseason, according to the team's ESPN reporter, David Newton. "Beyond being held out of two mandatory practices as a precaution after a collision the previous day, McMillan has been as advertised," Newton said. "He has made everyone around him better because he can play every receiver spot. He has created competition at receiver, something that wasn't there a year ago. His presence has benefited 2024 first-round pick Xavier Legette, who believes he and McMillan double the problems for defenses." McMillan was excellent in his final two collegiate seasons at Arizona, catching 174 passes for 2,721 yards and 18 touchdowns in 25 games. He is expected to immediately become Bryce Young's WR1 in what could be one of the most improved offenses in the NFL under Year-2 head coach Dave Canales. The target completion in Carolina is not worrisome for T-Mac, so he has a clear path to paying off at his low-end WR3 pricetag in 2025.