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Tampa Bay Buccaneers Top Breakout Candidate in 2026
0 Share Newsweek is a Trust Project member See more of our trusted coverage when you search. Prefer Newsweek on Google to see more of our trusted coverage when you search. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers enter the 2026 season without the face of their franchise over the last decade, Mike Evans.
Evans decided to sign with the San Francisco 49ers this offseason after 12 seasons with the Bucs. Over that span, he racked up 11 straight 1,000-yard seasons, tied for an NFL record, earned six Pro Bowl honors, and won a Super Bowl.
That leaves behind a massive void that somebody will need to fill, and all signs point to second-year wide receiver Emeka Egbuka being that player.
Egbuka, the 19th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft out of Ohio State, wasted no time making his presence felt as a rookie. He caught a game-winning touchdown in under a minute left in his very first start, and by the end of September, he had racked up 282 yards and four touchdowns on 18 catches, earning NFC Offensive Rookie of the Month honors.
However, while Egbuka was electric early — with Evans, Chris Godwin, and Jalen McMillan all battling injuries — he cooled off considerably down the stretch once everybody got healthy. He finished with 938 yards and six touchdowns on 63 receptions, averaging 14.9 yards per reception.
While those are still elite numbers for a rookie receiver, they're far off the pace he was on early in the year. Had he kept up his pace from the first month of the season, he would have finished with closer to around 1,200 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 80 receptions — numbers that would have put him in legitimate All-Pro conversations.
But with Evans now in San Francisco, Egbuka has the chance to put up those types of numbers.
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Even at 32 years old, Evans still saw 61 targets across just eight games last season. He'd been the focal point of the offense for years, and now Egbuka is the frontrunner to take over that role.
Offensive coordinator Zac Robinson has already compared Egbuka's game to Cooper Kupp's , and the plan appears to be locking him into a defined role — a notable shift from his rookie year when he bounced around the formation and wore down as the season progressed.
Godwin, McMillan, and a deeper receiving corps with second-year wideout Tez Johnson and incoming rookie Ted Hurst III will help share the load, but this is now Egbuka's offense. If he can carry his early-season form from last year into a full 17-game season in 2026, he can cement his spot as one of the NFL's next premier wide receivers.
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