What’s a guy gotta do to get an “A” in this class?
Apparently not being your team’s best wide receiver and one of the league’s best players at your position from the moment you stepped off your college campus and onto an NFL roster.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers first round pick and wide receiver Emeka Egbuka got taken down a notch in Bleacher Report’s grades for all 32 of the 2025 first round picks following his blazing hot start to both his career and the regular season.
Egbuka, who leads the Buccaneers with 18 receptions for 282 yards and 4 touchdowns, received a “B” while 8 other first round picks received either an “A” or “A-” and just one, Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Jihaad Campbell, received an “A+” for their play.
Players that received an “A” included one player on a winless team — New York Jets offensive tackle Armad Membou — and 4 players off teams with 1-3 records.
Egbuka has been as important to Tampa Bay’s 3-1 start as any player on the roster.
The Ohio State product already has four touchdowns in four games and is coming off the first 100-yard outing of his NFL career,” Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon wrote on October 1. “He’s caught at least four passes every week, but he needs to become more efficient in order to take the next step.”
It seems like Gagnon may have gotten hung up on one particular stat for Egbuka as he also has a team high 31 targets, but his 3 drops are 70th in the NFL among 78 eligible wide receivers and seems much more reflective of how he’s performed.
Egbuka Earned Early Respect From Teammates
The Buccaneers went against expert predictions when they took Egbuka at No. 19 overall despite needing help at seemingly every level of their defense.
It might end up being one of the most prescient picks in recent franchise history as the Buccaneers have been best by injuries at the wide receiver position.
Headed into a critical Week 5 road game against the Seattle Seahawks, all 3 of the starting wide receivers from last season have already missed time due to injuries.
NFL All-Pro Chris Godwin played his first game in a loss to the Eagles in Week 4 and looked rusty as Egbuka had the first 100-yard game of his career.
Another NFL All-Pro, Mike Evans, missed his first game of the season in Week 4 with a hamstring injury and could miss several more games.
Second-year wide receiver Jalen McMillan, who was arguably the team’s best pass catching threat down the stretch last season, will miss at least the first 8 games with a severely sprained neck.
Looking at NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds
In a year where there hasn’t been a standout rookie quarterback to this point in the season — although New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart might make a move — it’s not hard to see Egbuka bringing the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year trophy back to Tampa Bay.
Oddsmakers in Las Vegas are already leaning that way. As of October 1, Egbuka was the betting favorite to bring the award home across all of the major betting services, according to Vegas Insider, with +250 odds across the board.
Las Vegas Raiders rookie running back Ashton Jeanty — who received an “A-” from Bleacher Report — is just behind Egbuka at +375 odds.
The Buccaneers have had 2 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year winners and both were running backs, with Warrick Dunn in 1997 and Cadillac Williams in 2005.
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This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
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