Every year, the NFL Draft injects a ton of new talent into the league. Naturally, this shakes up fantasy football values. With the Carolina Panthers spending the eighth overall pick on Tetairoa McMillan, what does this mean for the fantasy values of Bryce Young, Adam Thielen, Jalen Coker, and others?
Fantasy Impact of Panthers Drafting Tetairoa McMillan
All of the noise surrounding Matthew Golden overtaking McMillan as the WR1 was just that — noise. It was always going to be McMillan.
The landing spot in Carolina is a lot better than it may appear. The rookie has drawn some Drake London comparisons because he’s an old-school alpha X receiver, but London was a far better prospect.
That’s not a knock on McMillan, though, who can be a team’s WR1. In Carolina, he will have as good an opportunity as he could possibly ask for.
The Panthers’ WR1 is currently a 35-year-old Thielen. Or maybe it’s second-year UDFA Coker. Xavier Legette is also on the roster. None of these guys can shine McMillan’s shoes. This is a great spot for McMillan’s fantasy value, both for the short and long term. That is, of course, if the quarterback is right.
Bryce Young
Much like when the Arizona Cardinals drafted Josh Rosen and then took Kyler Murray the very next year, we give NFL teams credit for realizing when they got it wrong. The Panthers knew very quickly that Legette is nothing more than a rotational WR3/4. It’s unlikely he starts for them this year.
McMillan gives Young a legitimate alpha, something he did not have last season. With a true go-to target that isn’t the oldest starting WR in the NFL, McMillan could help elevate Young into a fantasy QB1.
Young had a rocky sophomore season, getting benched early on for Andy Dalton. But once Young got back in the saddle, he was an entirely different player.
While Young only averaged 14.6 fantasy points per game on the season, he was noticeably better over the latter part of the season.
From Weeks 12-18, Young posted games of 16.5, 23.6, 13.5, 14.0, 27.1, 16.9, and 36.4 fantasy points. That’s 21 ppg — QB1 numbers. McMillan makes Young’s weapons significantly better. He could be a sneaky late-round QB target in deeper leagues and is definitely someone I would look to target in Superflex.
Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker
Unless McMillan completely flops in training camp, he’s going to start at the X right away. That should push Thielen more to the slot, where he lined up 73% of the time last season. At his age, that’s a good spot for him to be a safety blanket. No team needs to rely on Thielen as their main playmaker at this point in his career.
Thielen averaged a respectable 14.0 ppg last season. He may still have something left in the tank, but it’s unlikely he will come close to that number this season.
As for Coker, the UDFA earned a starting role in Week 10 and never lost it. He will have weeks where he pops this season, but being a consistent fantasy Flex play is probably not in the cards.