Carolina Panthers wideout Tetairoa McMillan just his best Steve Smith Sr. impression—in more ways than one.
The second-year receiver helped guide the Panthers to an impressive 32-26 win over the Detroit Lions on Sunday night—reeling in career-highs with 14 receptions and 192 receiving yards while tying another career-high with two touchdowns. But although he had already chalked up a two-score game twice before, this one looked a little different—or, to Panthers fans, quite familiar . . .
“If you see this face, I scored”
— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) October 5, 2026
holy aura 😭 pic.twitter.com/e2vgtph4Zo
— VIDEO (@pahrduve) October 5, 2026
McMillan was asked about his tribute following the victory.
"I thought the camera had a mic," he joked. "I don't know why it didn't catch what I said. But I said,
really, I said shoutout to Steve Smith. 'If you see this face, that means I scored, again.' So I did a little tribute to him, for sure."
That aforementioned stat line may also be a tribute to the franchise's all-time leading receiver. McMillan tied Smith's personal-best with his 14 catches and came up just nine yards short of Smith's 201, the regular-season franchise record, from 2005.
With McMillan seemingly reaching new heights early on in his second pro campaign, something tells us we'll keep seeing that face for many games to come.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers WR Tetairoa McMillan talks about his awesome tribute to Steve Smith Sr.
