Ten Terrific CGC-certified Cards of NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Tetairoa McMillan

The 2026 NFL Draft is set to take place in Pittsburgh later this month, with a new class of rookies on the way. Teams are readying their big boards and analyzing what college players could improve their rosters this offseason. At this time last year, the Carolina Panthers were a team that needed to fill several positions, with one major need being more offensive weapons for quarterback Bryce Young. It didn't take the Panthers long to do exactly that on the first day of last year's draft.

With the eighth overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, the team selected Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan. While some analysts and fans preferred a top defender with the pick, McMillan calmed any doubts over his selection right away. The Hawaiian-born receiver hit the ground running, topping 100 yards receiving in a single game for the first time in just Week 2. McMillan would go on to have several standout games throughout his rookie season, including his first and second career touchdowns in the same game in Week 6. If NFL fans didn't know about the young receiver already, they did by Week 11 after a huge performance that included 12 catches, 130 yards receiving and two touchdowns in an overtime win against the Atlanta Falcons.

Carolina improved on both sides of the ball last season, which led to the team's first playoff berth since 2017. While there were several factors that went into the team's progress last season, McMillan's emergence as a go-to target and downfield threat played a vital role in the Panthers' offensive success in the regular season and in a hard-fought 34-31 loss in the playoffs to the Los Angeles Rams. For his efforts, McMillan was selected to the All-Rookie Team and was named Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Now, as the 2026 NFL Draft approaches on April 23, we're revisiting last season's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award winner and some of his top CGC-certified cards.

Ten Terrific Cards of Tetairoa McMillan

2024 Bowman University Best Best of '24 Autographs #BOA-TMC Tetairoa McMillan

McMillan was one of the best wide receivers in the nation during his time with the Arizona Wildcats, where he broke school records and became the highest-selected offensive player in Arizona history. Prior to his NFL career, collectors could find the receiver's trading cards in only a handful of products, with one being Bowman University Best Football. The set also included some of McMillan's earliest autographed cards, like the one above.

2025 Panini Prizm Draft Picks Manga #M-7 Tetairoa McMillan

Arguably the most sought-after inserts in the 2025 Panini Prizm Draft Picks set are the super short-printed Manga cards, which feature Japanese-inspired manga illustrations of athletes. One of the most fun and attractive cards from the subset is of Hawaiian-born McMillan, who is seen surfing while in his white Arizona uniform and carrying a football. This is one of the rarest and most valuable cards from the wide receiver's college career.

2025 Panini Mosaic #274 Tetairoa McMillan Rookie Variation - White

There are several products that have become staples for NFL rookie card collections and one of those is Panini's annual Mosaic set. Known for their vibrant chromium cardstock and dazzling mosaic-like background designs, no rookie card collection is complete without them. Of course, it is even better if you can add a rare parallel like this White Rookie Variation example that is serial-numbered to only 25 copies.

2025 Panini Mosaic Stained Glass #3 Tetairoa McMillan

Sticking with the same 2025 Panini Mosaic set, one of the most popular cards to chase is the short-printed Stained Glass inserts. Imitating exactly what the cards are named after, the inserts look like stained glass windows with a sports twist. As another McMillan rookie issue, this particular card is all the more collectible.

2025 Panini Origins Future Fabrics #FF6 Tetairoa McMillan - Gold

Rookie cards with a piece of memorabilia in them are also coveted, especially rare patches that include the most prominent pieces of a player's uniform. Although NFL Shield logos are often the rarest, cards that feature patches of a player's name, team name, team logo or jersey number are popular to collect. Serial-numbered to only 10 copies ever made, this Panini Origins Future Fabrics card showcases almost the entire face of the Carolina Panthers logo.

2025 Panini Immaculate Collection Rookie Patch Autographs #104 Tetairoa McMillan - Gold

Panini's annual high-end Immaculate Collection is one of the best products for RPAs (rookie patch autographs). The thick premium cards with foil accents provide a clean design that lets the focus stay on the player, the patch and the signature. This particular rarity features a seamed blue and silver patch as well as McMillan's on-card autograph in blue ink and is serial numbered to only 25 copies made.

2025 Donruss Downtown #15 Tetairoa McMillan

Panini's Downtown inserts have become one of the most coveted modern inserts in the entire hobby. Featuring artistic renderings of players with nods to their team and city landmarks, these super short-printed inserts are rare case hits with real value. A McMillan Downtown rookie card is featured among the 2025 Donruss set, with the chrome version also available with the same imagery in the 2025 Donruss Optic set. The only thing that can make the McMillan Downtown rookie card even better? Getting it certified and earning the coveted grade of CGC Pristine 10!

2025 Panini National Treasures Rookie Materials Autographs Quad #RMAQ-TMN Tetairoa McMillan

Another high-end set from Panini, National Treasures has become a staple for premium hits. As always, some of the best and most coveted rookie cards of NFL players are among the annual National Treasures Football checklist, including several McMillan offerings. One of the McMillan rarities in the 2025 set was this Rookie Materials Autographs Quad card, which features a huge jersey patch in four panels along with an on-card signature in blue ink.

2025 Panini National Treasures Rookie Treasured Impressions #RTI-TMN Tetairoa McMillan - Holo Silver

This is another 2025 National Treasures McMillan rookie card from one of the many premium subsets in the product. Instead of four smaller panels from the prior Quad subset, the Rookie Treasured Impressions subset features one large jersey patch at front and center and another on-card autograph in blue ink just below. RPAs are always sought after and the lower the serial number the better, with this particular copy being numbered to only 25 copies made.

2025 Panini National Treasures Rookie NFL Gear Combo Materials #RGCM-EM Emeka Egbuka/Tetairoa McMillan- Laundry Tag NFL Shield

One more high-end hit from the 2025 National Treasures Football set and it's a one-of-one rarity featuring the best two NFL rookie wide receivers of last season: Tetairoa McMillan and Emeka Egbuka. The card features rare NFL logo patches from each player's jersey on this Rookie NFL Gear Combo Materials card, which showcases McMillan on the bottom with a Panthers blue border and background, and Egbuka on the top with a Tampa Bay Buccaneers red border and background. With each of these receivers leading their teams last year in receiving in their debut seasons, these NFC South rivals could be the face of their division for years to come.

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