Part 1, WR: Tetairoa McMillan, and then... what?
Bob McGinn's 41st series begins. This is not a star-studded class of wideouts. But wideouts are also valued now more than ever. Who could be the steal of the class? A gamble or two could pay off...
This is the 41st year, and the fourth year at Go Long, that Bob McGinn has written a position-by-position series previewing the NFL draft. Previously, it appeared in the Green Bay Press-Gazette (1985-’91), the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (1992-’17), BobMcGinnFootball.com (2018-’19) and The Athletic (2020-’21). Until 2014, many personnel people were quoted by name. The series reluctantly adopted an all-anonymous format in 2015 at the request of most scouts.
First of 12 parts: Wide Receivers
Go Long is your forever home for unvarnished NFL coverage.
By Bob McGinn
A total of 60 wide receivers have been selected among the top 100 picks in the last four NFL drafts, an average of 15 that reflects how colleges are churning out skilled, talented prospects and how much teams value the position.
That trend is expected to hit the brakes next month with one team reporting seven wideouts in the top 100 and another projecting the numbers of starters at eight.
“There’s maybe three or four top guys,” an AFC executive said. “There’s a lot of Day 3 meat. It’s not very top-heavy.”
The cupboard isn’t quite as barren as 2008, which along with 1990 are the only drafts since 1966 in which no wide receiver was chosen in Round 1. It’s possible that we could see a repeat of 2006, the last time only one wideout (Santonio Holmes at No. 25) went in the first.
“This receiver group is terrible,” an NFC personnel man said. “Absolutely terrible. There’s nothing here. Guys are going to move up a round or two just because it’s a terrible year. A third-rounder is going to be taken in the first and a fourth-rounder in the second. That’s how weak this group is. And it’s been great the last X amount of years.”
Colorado’s Travis Hunter, who will be included with the cornerbacks, generally is ranked as the No. 1 prospect at both positions.
“He’s dynamite,” one scout said. “He’s something else. As a receiver, he’s quick as (bleep). He can cut. I mean, explosive. His hands are rare, rare, rare. I don’t know if I’ve seen someone catch the ball like he does.
“I’d go Hunter and then (Tetairoa) McMillan, then there’s a huge dropoff. The rest are second-rounders, at best. At best.”
Go Long subscribers can see what scouts have to say about all of the top receivers in this year’s draft below. Risk-reward prospects abound — scouts never mince words.
WIDE RECEIVERS
1. TETAIROA McMILLAN, Arizona (6-4, 215, 4.53, 1): Third-year junior. “He’s a Mike Evans-type guy,” one scout said. Said another: “He’ll be like a Drake London kind of guy. He’s a big dude that can catch. Pretty good athlete for being so big. He plays big. Depending what you do with Travis Hunter, this guy is by far the best (wide receiver).”