When the Carolina Panthers brought in wide receiver Xavier Legette with the No. 32 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, his presence was assurance for second-year quarterback Bryce Young.
The name of the game for the offseason was surrounding Young with players who would make his life easier.
First Carolina traded for wide receiver Diontae Johnson. Then Carolina drafted a big-bodied receiver, in Legette, who said in an interview with the Carolina Panthers YouTube show, that he is ready to make plays for the second-year signal caller.
"He texted me after they picked me," Legette said of his growing relationship with Young. "He texted me, 'Man, I am very excited to work with you.' I just texted him back and said, 'Let's get to it.'"
Legette added: "He's a very talented quarterback. He's going to put that ball in there – I gotta make them plays for 'em."
The selection of Legette has been equally praised and criticized. Detractors of the selection claim Legette only had one extremely productive season at the University of South Carolina.
That criticism is fair, but it isn't complete.
The 2023 season marked the first time where the training wheels were finally taken off Legette's game. He was told to go out and be the player he was meant to be. The result of that was a 1,255-yard, seven touchdown, season. At the NFL level, he will stretch the field – only making life easier for all the wide receivers involved.
Concerns about Legette are overblown. He appears to have the mindset that will make him a star. It is only a matter of time until he lives up to that billing.
"It's my ball or nobodies," Legette said. "I want to make those plays, man. I want to make those plays 100 percent of the time."
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