This Carolina Panthers player is named most likely to reach his first Pro Bowl for the 2026 season.
The Carolina Panthers offense will be in focus for the upcoming season. After a 2025 season in which they won the NFC South and reached the playoffs, the goal for Dave Canales team is to now improve on that.
A big part of the improvement will rely on the shoulders of quarterback Bryce Young and the offense as a whole. The Panthers are going to need their offense to take a step forward and play better to prove they can be a legit contender in the NFC.
For Young, he's entering year four of his career and there are questions about his future in terms of a long-term contract. His top weapon, Tetairoa McMillan, is entering year two and if he takes a big jump in his development, the Panthers should be in good shape.
He's coming off a rookie season in which he earned AP Offensive Rookie of the Year honors for his impressive campaign. Now, he's projected to earn another honor to his career.
Kevin Patra of NFL.com wrote about the players with the best chance to make their first Pro Bowl and he named McMillan for the Panthers. Here is what Patra wrote on McMillan and his upcoming season:
Tetairoa McMillan was the obvious choice out of Carolina. The 6-foot-4 receiver displayed all the attributes of a go-to target in his first NFL campaign. A stellar route runner who can win at the point of the catch, T-Mac is just scratching the surface. En route to 1,014 yards, the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year generated just two 100-yard games last season and was under the 50-yard mark eight times. Smoothing out the dips and adding more blowup games will aid the Year 2 leap. Additionally, five of McMillan’s seven TDs came in the final seven games last year.
McMillan flashed his potential last season with the impressive campaign he had. After being selected in the top 10 of the 2025 NFL Draft, McMillan played like a player worthy of that pick.
With him being Young's go-to target in 2025, it's expected once again that he will be the top target in 2026. The Panthers have a need for a legit WR2 or WR3 which would take some pressure off of McMillan. However, we don't see the production dropping in 2026 despite not having that.
