Who Should I Start? Ricky Pearsall or Tetairoa McMillan

Thursday, September 4, 12:15 PM

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reports that the San Francisco 49ers believe wide receiver Ricky Pearsall is "poised for a Year 2 Jump." The former first-round pick dealt with a myriad of issues during his rookie campaign, but is slated to handle a large workload in 2025 with the 49ers' wide receiving corps in shambles. Fellow wideout Jauan Jennings' recent return somewhat throws a wrench in that, at least for the time being. Still, it's unclear if Jennings will require ramp-up time as he's dealt with a calf injury for the majority of the summer. Pearsall and quarterback Brock Purdy have spent time this offseason developing chemistry, and San Francisco's passing offense has been excellent with him at the helm. If Jennings is slow to find his groove, the Florida State product could be in for a tremendous season.

Tuesday, September 2, 12:08 PM

Carolina Panthers rookie wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan enters his first NFL season as his team's clear number one option in the passing game. In the past week, Carolina has traded away veteran wideout Adam Thielen to the Minnesota Vikings and lost Jalen Coker (quad) to a quad injury, which should only increase McMillan's targets. The number eight overall pick has a favorable matchup on paper in his NFL regular-season debut against the Jacksonville Jaguars. In 2024, Jacksonville's defense ranked dead last in total receiving yards allowed (4,605) and 28th in total receiving touchdowns allowed (29). Additionally, Panthers quarterback Bryce Young finished 2024 by playing the best football of his career, throwing for 1,583 yards and 11 touchdowns over his final seven games. If Young can carry that momentum to 2025, McMillan could get his season off to a strong start. He should be viewed as a low-end fantasy WR2 in Week 1.