The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were without their leading rusher in last week’s win over the San Francisco 49ers as running back Bucky Irving recovered from a shoulder injury.
They’ll almost certainly be without their leading receiver, rookie first round pick Emeka Egbuka, against the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football in Week 7.
“Emeka Egbuka is dealing with a hamstring injury … and it’s my understanding he’s not expected to play Monday against the Detroit Lions,” the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport said on October 15. “It seems like every receiver for the Buccaneers has dealt with some injury at some point this season.”
While Rapoport isn’t far off, those injuries haven’t seemed to slow the Buccaneers down yet — they’re off to a 5-1 start to the regular season.
Breaking Down WR Issues for Buccaneers
All 3 of Tampa Bay’s projected starting wide receivers have missed time due to injuries this season, but it’s the first game Egbuka will miss after he was a revelation through the first 6 games with 27 receptions for 469 yards and 5 touchdowns.
“Emeka Egbuka is the 3rd player since 1970 with 425+ receiving yards and 5+ rec TD through 5 career games along with Randy Moss and Ja’Marr Chase,” CBS Sports researcher Doug Clawson wrote on X on October 5.
Egbuka, the No. 19 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft, was fourth in the NFL in receiving headed into a 30-19 win over the San Francisco 49ers — a game he had to leave early with a hamstring injury.
NFL All-Pro wide receiver Mike Evans has missed the last 2 games with a hamstring injury after missing 3 games in 2024 with the same injury. NFL All-Pro wide receiver Chris Godwin missed the first 3 games as he recovered from a dislocated left ankle — he missed the game against the 49ers
A third projected starter, Jalen McMillan, likely won’t play until Week 13 with a severely sprained neck.
“All of Baker’s targets it seems, are out,” Rapoport said on Monday, October 13. “You can add Emeka Egbuka to that list. He’s dealing with a hamstring injury … it doesn’t seem that serious but I do expect hin to miss some time. It’s not as serious as the Mike Evans hamstring injury but the Buccaneers are going to have to rely on Tez Johnson and Kam Johnson, who we saw make plays (against the 49ers).”
How Johnson & Johnson Can Fill Void for Bucs
Nowhere in the NFL is the “Next Man Up” ethos of football culture more in actual practice right now than Tampa Bay, where one player after another has gone down and one player after another has stepped into their place to help the Buccaneers win games.
The latest example came in the Week 6 win over the 49ers, NFL MVP frontrunner Baker Mayfield threw touchdown passes to rookie wide receiver and seventh round pick Tez Johnson and second year wide receiver Kam Johnson — players who had never caught a touchdown pass in an NFL game before Week 6.
Johnson, 5-foot-10 and 154 pounds, was already the lightest player in NFL history and now is also the lightest player in NFL history to score a touchdown.
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