Dallas Cowboys 2025 draft scouting report: WR Tetairoa McMillan

Tetairoa McMillan has a lot of fans this draft cycle.

We continue our 2025 NFL Draft preview of draft prospects that could interest the Dallas Cowboys. Today we are looking at wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan from Arizona.

Tetairoa McMillan

WR
Arizona Wildcats
Junior
4-star recruit
6’5”
212 lbs

History

Tetairoa McMillan, born on April 5th, 2003 in Waimānalo, Hawaii, moved to Southern California at age 12 and attended Servite High School in Anaheim. During his high school career, McMillan was a standout, achieving 179 receptions for 2,640 yards and 34 touchdowns. He was a finalist for the Gatorade Football Player of the Year and won the Polynesian Football Player of the Year Award in 2021. Initially committed to the University of Oregon, he changed his commitment to Arizona, where he became the highest-rated recruit in the school’s history.

At Arizona, McMillan made an immediate impact, leading all true freshmen nationally with 702 receiving yards and eight touchdowns in his freshman year. His sophomore season in 2023 saw him catch 90 passes for 1,402 yards and ten touchdowns, placing him fifth in the nation for receiving yards. He was also named a third-team AP All-American that year.

In 2024, he continued his exceptional performance, surpassing school records with 1,319 receiving yards on 84 catches, earning First-Team All-American honors. McMillan’s junior season was particularly notable where he broke the school record for receiving yards in a game with 304 yards against New Mexico, tying the single-game touchdown record with four scores. He was the first player in FBS history to achieve 10+ receptions, 300+ receiving yards, 30.0+ yards per reception, and 4+ receiving touchdowns in a single game.

McMillan left Arizona with an impressive college career of 213 receptions, 3,423 receiving yards, and 26 touchdowns, making him the all-time leading receiver in Wildcats program history for yardage.

Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

2024 Statistics

713 Offensive Snaps
130 Targets
84 Receptions
1,319 Receiving Yards
8 TDs
430 YAC
29 Missed Tackles Forced
55 First Downs

NFL Combine/Pro Day

TBC

Awards

All-America (2024)
First-team All-Big 12 (2024)
Polynesian Collegiate Football Player of the Year (2024)
Polynesian High School Football Player of the Year (2021)
Second-team All-Pac-12 (2023)

Scorecard

Overall- 92.1
Speed- 84
Acceleration- 86
Agility- 82
Strength- 88
Catching- 88
Route Running-81
YAC Ability- 82
Blocking- 60
Discipline- 98

THE GOOD

• At 6’5” and over 210 lbs, his size makes him a significant threat in contested catch situations.
• Has excellent hands, with a low drop rate throughout his college career.
• His ability to catch in traffic and make contested catches is elite.
• Shows very good footwork for short and intermediate routes, showing the ability to create separation.
• His combination of size and speed allows him to break tackles and turn short catches into significant gains.
• He’s capable of stretching the field vertically with very long strides, having shown he can track the ball well on deep routes.
• A very capable run blocker.

THE BAD

• He’s not outrunning every defensive back, which could limit his deep-threat capability against the faster NFL cornerbacks.
• He could benefit from crisper routes, especially at the top of his breaks. His size sometimes compensates for this at the college level but might be more exposed in the pros.
• Against NFL defenses, creating consistent separation could be a challenge given his speed and route break concerns.
• His physical style of play might lead to early wear and tear.

THE FIT

Tetairoa McMillan is best suited for teams with an offensive scheme that utilizes size on the outside for jump balls, contested catches, and red-zone targets. His blocking ability also makes him a good fit in offenses that value receiver participation in the run game. Likely an early Day 1 prospect, his combination of size and physical play style makes him a high-upside prospect, particularly for teams looking for a big-bodied receiver, X-type receiver who can be a go-to target.

His need to work on his route running is crucial especially at the top of his breaks. Speed is also something else that needs to be worked on and any team drafting him will need to manage his snap count based on his aggressive play style.

McMillan’s college career has shown he can be the focal point of any offense, and with some refinement in his route running and separation skills, he has the potential to be a top-tier NFL wide receiver within a few years of joining the league.

COMPARISON

DeVante Parker, Miami Dolphins

BTB GRADE

Top-15 prospect

CONSENSUS RANKING

6th
(Consensus ranking based on the average ranking from 90 major scoring services)