Panthers News: Legette Faces Uphill Battle for Relevance in Carolina’s Receiver Room
Xavier Legette’s path to a meaningful role with the Carolina Panthers is narrowing, not widening, heading into the 2026 NFL season.
The Panthers selected Legette 32nd overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, making him the final pick of the first round that year after Carolina traded up to land him. Two seasons in, the production has not matched the draft capital. Legette has yet to crack the top 60 fantasy wide receivers in either of his first two NFL years, finishing his 2025 campaign with 35 catches for 363 yards and three touchdowns across 15 games, numbers that left him as Carolina’s third receiver despite the opportunity in front of him.
That opportunity may shrink further in 2026. Tetairoa McMillan, the 2025 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, enters the season entrenched as the team’s clear No. 1 receiver. Behind him, Jalen Coker posted 33 receptions for 394 yards in only 11 appearances last season, emerging as a dependable second option for quarterback Bryce Young despite significantly less playing time than Legette. That Coker outproduced him in far fewer games was not lost on Carolina’s coaching staff.
Now the Panthers have added another challenger. Carolina selected Tennessee receiver Chris Brazzell II with the 83rd pick in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft. A First-team All-SEC selection in 2025, Brazzell led the SEC in receiving with 1,017 yards and nine touchdowns and ran a 4.37-second 40-yard dash at the Combine. At 6-foot-4, he gives the Panthers a physically imposing deep threat, a profile similar to what Legette was supposed to deliver when Carolina moved into the first round to get him two years ago.
Legette does enter the summer with experience on his side. He understands the system, has developed a working relationship with Young, and has shown flashes of big-play ability when targeted downfield. Those advantages give him a head start on Brazzell as training camp opens.
But the margin for error is thin. Another season where Legette drifts toward the back end of the depth chart would further erode his standing not only in Carolina but in dynasty fantasy leagues, where he has already started to slip.
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