Panthers' HC on Acquiring a WR1: "I Think We Got That Guy... That's Xavier (Legette)"

The Panthers certainly aren’t shying away from throwing their support behind their first round draft selection from last season, with Canales insisting that despite the departure of Diontae Johnson (whom he dubbed their true WR1 before the beginning of 2024) Legette is very much the alpha they’re looking for to fill that role. Legette’s rookie season came with plenty of struggles, including a barely startable bottom line each week and not a lot of upside to speak of as Bryce Young struggled to being the year before picking up the slack in the closing weeks of the season. Also working against Legette moving forward is the presence of plenty of competition around him – Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker were both fantasy relevant last year, even more so than Legette – and the potential for the Panthers to go rogue on these comments and add a difference making WR in the draft. There are questions about the quality of the offense and whether Young can snowball last season’s end-of-year momentum into the beginning of and throughout the 2025 season, but having the support of the coaching staff is a good place to start for Legette as he looks to bounce back – and break out – into true weekly fantasy relevance.