Arguably the top receiver in this year’s NFL draft class, Arizona’s Tetairoa McMillan has scheduled an official 30 visit with the New Orleans Saints, per KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson. He’s a potential target at the No. 9 pick for the team in Round 1.
At 6-foot-4 and 219 pounds, McMillan has drawn tons of comparisons to a couple of NFC South receivers. Atlanta’s Drake London as well as Tampa’s Mike Evans are two guys that closely mimic the game of McMillan. Each displays a big catch radius to go along with the ability to win in contested catch situations. That’s a type of player that the Saints are missing in their offense.
Over his three years at Arizona, McMillan was ultra productive with the Wildcats setting the school record with 3,423 receiving yards, to go along with 26 touchdowns. In his last season, McMillan ranked third in the FBS in receiving yards with 1,319 yards earning First-Team All-American honors.
Lately, the talk on McMillan has quieted down a bit mostly due to the lack of pre-draft testing. With questions about his speed and ability to separate months prior, McMillan decided not to test at this year’s combine ultimately raising concerns about his athleticism. McMillan did however test at his pro day running anywhere from low-to-mid 4.5’s, depending on who you ask. These numbers are plenty fast for a receiver of his size which shouldn’t worry those considering him as a selection in round one.
Something that is of possible concern is McMillan’s commitment to the game. Recently, in a social media clip McMillan was asked about his liking for the game of football where he stated that he “doesn’t watch football”. This response wasn’t surprising as we’ve heard players such as running back Alvin Kamara present a similar stance when it comes to watching the game at their own leisure. What was much more alarming though was his answer when asked if it’s difficult to watch film without liking to watch football in which he answered, “I don’t like watching film either. I don’t ever need to watch it by myself because we go over it as a receiver group.” A very interesting response to say the least, even if it happened several years ago when he was a 19-year old freshman.
It’s hard to say if something like this will impact his draft stock but it certainly doesn’t help. With that said though, McMillan’s film speaks for itself and he should be in consideration for the first receiver taken in this year’s class.