Panthers' Tetairoa McMillan says he's stronger, but is he more versatile, too?

If Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan repeats in 2026 his production from his NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign, he will join some pretty special company. Only Marques Colston, Odell Beckham Jr., Justin Jefferson and Ja'Marr Chase have had at least 70 catches for 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns in their first two seasons.

And though McMillan needs to stay healthy and adapt to the NFL adjusting to him after a stellar first season in Carolina, the second-year playmaker has built up his body to withstand the punishment of pro defenders and improve his strength for the season.

McMillan says he is "almost 20 pounds heavier" since the start of his rookie season, and that additional mass should help his durability and stamina, as well as his potential versatility within the Panthers' offense, with coordinator Brad Idzik now calling the plays.

"I was always a big fan, just in all the years that I played football, just being able to be versatile -- play inside, play outside -- just expand the offense in that way," McMillan said Wednesday.

Last season, McMillan ran 515 routes, with 107 (20.7%) coming from the slot, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. When McMillan lined up wide, he had a 54.2% catch rate, but in the slot -- albeit on a much smaller sample size -- he caught the ball at a 69.7% clip. McMillan collected 18 catches for 220 yards (12.2 yards per catch) and two touchdowns inside, while posting 52 catches for 794 yards (15.3) and five touchdowns on 408 routes from the outside.

Though McMillan's stat line looks better on the outside, the overall passing offense didn't necessarily surge in that regard, as QB passer ratings favored his limited slot targets. The passer rating for slot targets to McMillan was seven points higher (88.6 vs. 81.6) than his targets outside. Five interceptions were thrown when targeting McMillan's outside routes, but two came when he ran out of the slot.

"He certainly played single [receiver] a lot last year as well, just giving us that big, reliable target over there," Panthers coach Dave Canales said. "But as y'all know, you can do things [on defense] into the boundary with the single-side X to help. You can cloud, you can get a safety dropping in, you can move a linebacker to kind of spy, just take a little bit of space over there.

"So, there's things you can do, but as you move [the receivers] around in different spots, it gets harder and harder to try to pair up your best coverage guys, or they may have to move a corner inside, and then that creates matchups in other places."

Canales said this week that the Panthers want to take advantage of McMillan's size over the middle. Now listed as 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds, McMillan is a big target for quarterback Bryce Young, who is5-foot-10 and 204 pounds. So for Young, the bigger the target, the easier the completion, especially over the middle.

"We'll use [McMillan] in a versatile way, be able to take advantage of how comfortable he is in the slot, and then also still be able to take advantage of the one-on-one opportunities when they come to us," Canales said of the Panthers' No. 8 pick in 2025 out of Arizona.

McMillan's offseason weight gain was prompted by what he lost during his rookie campaign. Listed at 212 pounds last season, the wide receiver said this spring that he got lighter as the season progressed, affecting his physicality.

"In college, whenever I was heavier, I was stronger, faster, and that's how I feel right now," McMillan said. "Last year ... I didn't feel like myself, like I wasn't moving as good, didn't feel as powerful. Now, I feel like I got a lot [of strength] back."

Canales said McMillan was "a man on a mission to get stronger" this offseason. The coach also said the additional mass should help the receiver's effectiveness against press coverage on the outside. It'll also help when McMillan runs into traffic out of the slot.

With Jalen Coker healthy to begin the season, the Panthers can rotate their receivers around the formation. McMillan, Coker, Xavier Legette and Brycen Tremayne all can move around, and slot players such as Jimmy Horn Jr. and John Metchie III can add wrinkles to various packages.

But this Panthers offense is built around McMillan. And his fluidity is essential for creating mismatches in Idzik's playbook.

"[The slot] allows me to play decoy sometimes; it allows me to get open," McMillan said. "It allows everybody, just the offense, to flow easily."br/]