It's far from breaking news to say that the Carolina Panthers didn’t have the best performance last season from the wide receivers group. So, I’ll say it - they didn’t.
The team did make a move to acquire Diontae Johnson from the Pittsburgh Steelers in a trade for Donte Jackson and an exchange of late-round draft selections. But much more is needed to give quarterback Bryce Young everything he needs to make a better go of things under new head coach Dave Canales.
Did you hear that exclamation of gratitude? That was likely second-year signal-caller Young, who one has to imagine was pleased with that infusion of talent into the pass-catchers corps.
There may be more additions coming during the upcoming NFL Draft, set to cut ribbons on April 25. Xavier Legette is a prospect that the Panthers have met with on numerous occasions now and appears to have significant interest in the player's admission. He even went as far as to say those in power had told him to expect a call if he made it out of the first round.
Legette is a polarizing prospect, at least for the Carolina fanbase. There is a wide variance of opinion about what his projected draft value should be.
The Panthers hold picks No. 33 and No. 39 at the beginning portion of the second round. From looking at all of the usual suspects in the mock draft arena, Legette could hear his name called anywhere from the latter part of the first round to the beginning of the third round on Friday.
I don’t believe he lingers on the board that long. If he’s a true target for the tea, they’ll need to allocate a second-round pick to bring him into the fold barring a drastic shift in course.
Let’s look at the tale of the tape where Legette is concerned in this special scouting report.
Xavier Legette scouting report
- Height: 6-foot-1 | Weight: 221 pounds
- Hand size: 9 inches | 31 7/8 inches
- NFL.com ranking: WR13 | 2023 PFF grade: 82.5
Over Xavier Legette’s five-year career at the University of South Carolina, he amassed 113 receptions, 1,678 receiving yards, and 12 touchdowns. The 2023 season alone accounted for most of that production when he caught 71 passes for 1,255 yards and seven scores.
Typically, a late breakout such as one by a fifth-year senior raises a red flag in the football analytics world. Legette’s journey isn’t a straightforward one, however.
Legette began his high school playing days as a wide receiver but was asked to play quarterback during his senior season. He performed well, but it didn’t help his receiver development at such a pivotal stage.
He grey-shirted upon arrival to South Carolina, only to then be followed up by COVID hitting the scene. Coaching change followed that. He was involved in a motorcycle accident in 2021 that caused him to miss a couple of games and potentially may have hindered on-field performances.
Legette also dealt with far more than his fair share of personal adversity and tragedy. The Mullins native lost both of his parents - his mother in 2015 and his father in 2019 - before even playing a down of college football. He is one of four siblings, and he plays the game with a clear remembering of how important family is and how they are rooting for him to be great.
His ability to persevere is pertinent to who Legette is on the football field, as well. By all accounts, he’s one of the hardest workers in the locker room and on the field. When he got his opportunity, he ran with it (pun intended).
The size and speed combination (4.39-second 40-yard dash) that the prospect brings to the wide receiver position isn’t a common one. He is oft compared to players like D.K. Metcalf and A.J. Brown in that regard. In my rankings, he lands at WR9 and is the No. 46 overall prospect on the board.
When considering a prospect with that type of frame, you wonder about his prowess as a big-play receiver. That’s where Legette can shine. He’s terrific in the catch phase, routinely using his first-class leaping ability (40-inch vertical at the NFL Scouting Combine) and wingspan to high-point the ball and finish with his strong hands in contested catch opportunities.
He did expand upon his route tree this past season, but he currently gets the best results on vertical planes. Legette displays a great burst off the line when defenses give cushion, getting into the defensive back and using his devastating speed to gain a winning position behind them. The wideout also boasts good tracking ability, specifically when running vertically.
I spoke about the obstacles and disruptions of his development as a receiver because the lack of polish still shows at times. Legette could improve upon general awareness of where he is and where he’s working to get to on the field - whether it be in blocking assignments or against zone coverages.
Often I noted seeing him run past a defender and try to double back to make the block, which is much more difficult and less likely to do from that vantage point. While he did expand the route tree, Legette will still have work to do to progress to a point where he can consistently win in the short and intermediate levels.
Legette has a tendency to round off breaks instead of sinking his hips and sharply changing direction. However, there are good examples on his tape of doing just that as well.
How would Xavier Legette fit on the Carolina Panthers?
- Rotational starter/physically complimentary player
From what I have been able to procure on the internet, it turns out Adam Thielen is not Benjamin Button and he will not be getting younger for the Carolina Panthers. That’s okay, he still has value as a slot/possession weapon within Dave Canales' offense.
Diontae Johnson brings the quick-pass concepts that Canales has already stressed the importance of, to the next level. With his ability to beat defenders off his release and arsenal of separation-creating route-running tools, the former third-round pick should be a tremendous addition to the passing attack.
But who is the deep threat? Who is the ball-winning receiver and threat from multiple alignments?
That’s where Xavier Legette can make his impact felt. He wasn’t impressive from a statistical viewpoint against press coverage, so simply saying he should slide right into the X role of the passing game wouldn’t be playing the rookie to his immediate strengths. He can make his hay by rotating through alignments as the Z or inside as a big slot receiver.
If defenses give him off coverage, he can make them pay. Legette can improve on his release package to progress against man defense and find work as the X, down the line. But there's nothing to suggest he cannot make an immediate impact upon further examination of the options available.
With the intermediate pressure that Johnson and Thielen should be able to impart unto a defense, Legette could be a serious weapon in one-on-one looks because of his muscular, dense frame and hyper-athletic ability. In the quick-pass game, he’s the exact type of player who can complete a slant route and take it to the house for six.
If he can improve upon those few key areas, Legette has as high of a ceiling as almost any wide receiver prospect in this class. But until he's officially there for the taking, Carolina faces a nervous wait without a first-round pick in 2024.