The 2025 NFL Draft is drawing closer, and with the busiest part of free agency now behind us, each team’s needs are becoming clearer, and draft boards are starting to take shape.
Tetairoa McMillan, wide receiver from Arizona and one of the top prospects in the class, made a statement that could hurt his draft stock during this final stretch of team evaluations.
Tetairoa McMillan Says He Doesn’t Watch Football ‘At All’
In a video shared by the S&L Texans Talk podcast, McMillan was asked if he watches football. The wide receiver responded with a surprising answer: “You don’t watch football?” he was asked by a person off-camera — “At all,” McMillan responded.
“I don’t ever need to watch about myself because we go over as a receiver group,” he continued.
Really surprised this hasn’t made the rounds more. I’m out on Tet McMillan. Here’s why courtesy of S&L ➡️ pic.twitter.com/Pwdv9ta7pf
— Mr.Optimistic (@MrOptimisticHou) March 28, 2025
This did not sit well with everyone, with one fan on X saying, “Really surprised this hasn’t made the rounds more. I’m out on Tet McMillan.”
However, not everyone thinks this is such a death knell. One fan replied, “You drastically overestimate A) how much NFL receivers watch film on their own. The vast majority are the exact same B) How much it even helps to begin with. Watching film without a coach helping break it down does absolutely nothing. Most players dont have the mind of a coach.”
Widely considered one of the two best wide receivers in this class, teams may begin to question McMillan’s commitment to football and prioritize other prospects ahead of him.
Currently, he’s projected to be selected within the top 10 picks of the NFL Draft, with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Las Vegas Raiders, and Carolina Panthers seen as potential landing spots.
In PFSN’s latest seven-round mock draft, the wide receiver fell to pick No. 18, where he was selected by the Seattle Seahawks. If he does slide down the board, Seattle could be an excellent landing spot — especially with Cooper Kupp arriving via free agency and Jaxon Smith-Njigba emerging as one of the NFL’s top receivers.
This drop on the draft board could have a significant financial impact on McMillan’s rookie contract. Since rookie deals are slotted, the guaranteed value decreases with each pick.
For example, if McMillan were to fall to the 18th pick, held by the Seahawks, his guaranteed contract would be for four years and $16.6 million. But if he were selected at No. 8 — currently held by the Carolina Panthers — that number would jump to $24.8 million, according to Spotrac.
In three years of college football, McMillan recorded 213 receptions, 3,423 receiving yards, and 26 total touchdowns while playing for Arizona. He was named a CSN first-team All-American and CSN Big 12 Wide Receiver of the Year in 2024 and also earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors in 2023.