Big year loading?
Barring injury, Joe thinks Emeka Egbuka will live up to the hype.
Mike Evans had one of his best training camps this summer. If it wasn’t his best, it was in the top two. Evans looked sensational.
And there is a reason Bucs types, including Baker Mayfield have been hyping up rookie receiver Egbuka. If not for Evans, Egbuka would have been the star of training camp.
(And Bucky Irving, too.)
Behind the scenes, Dan Graziano of ESPN has been hearing Bucs types rave about Egbuka. In fact, Graziano has heard so much pimping, Graziano decided to [make a prediction](https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46079215/2025-nfl-surprise-predictions-32-teams-stat-leaders-breakouts-fantasy-football#TB):
> **Don’t be surprised if … rookie Emeka Egbuka is the Bucs’ leading receiver.**
>
> What I’m hearing: The team has been absolutely raving about first-round pick Egbuka throughout the summer, praising him as hyper-advanced for a rookie in all facets of his game. Chris Godwin, who is working his way back from a major season-ending ankle injury, is on a very uncertain timetable for returning to the field and an even more uncertain one for returning to his old self. Veteran Mike Evans’ next sub-1,000-yard season will be his first, but he is 32 and missed three games last season. And Jalen McMillan, last year’s rookie standout who caught seven touchdown passes in the final five games of the season, will miss the start of 2025 because of a neck injury.
>
> If he’s everything we’re being told he is, Egbuka can play any of the wide receiver spots in the Tampa Bay offense, already has the trust of quarterback Baker Mayfield and appears in line for a massive share of the target opportunity on one of the league’s best offenses.
Yeah, as Graziano noted, with Jalen McMillan out, and who knows when Chris Godwin will return, and no defensive coordinator stupid enough to single-cover Mike Evans, Egbuka should get a bunch of targets because of how well he gets open.
Would it surprise Joe if Egbuka led the Bucs in receiving for 2025? No.