The struggling Buccaneers will host the Falcons on Thursday night as they look to turn their season around.
After a fast start, Emeka Egbuka’s rookie season has mirrored Tampa Bay’s 2025 campaign as a whole heading into the final four weeks of the regular season.
Through the Bucs’ first nine games, Egbuka averaged 75.2 receiving yards and 4.4 catches per contest while showing off his big play ability with six touchdowns and several plays of 30-plus yards.
Like his team, which has gone 1-3 since then, falling into a tie for first with the Panthers in the NFC South, Egbuka’s overall catch rate has decreased since then, hurting any chance he had at the Offensive Rookie of the Year award.
In the Bucs’ last four games, Egbuka is averaging just three catches and 32.2 yards through the air, a clear dip in production for the Ohio State product.
It doesn’t help that the rest of the Buccaneers’ receiving corps has gotten healthier over recent weeks.
Veteran star Chris Godwin returned from an ankle/fibula injury during Week 12, which was right as Egbuka’s play began to trend down.
For Thursday’s divisional clash, Bucs top receiver Mike Evans has a decent chance at returning from a broken collarbone he suffered during Week 7.
If Evans is in the fold, Egbuka will become arguably the WR3 on the Bucs’ depth chart, and that’s to say nothing of the emergence of fellow rookie Tez Johnson, who has been solid overall this season aside from a quiet last few weeks.
Betting on the NFL?
Despite a lost season, the Falcons’ pass defense has actually been solid this season, allowing just 191.5 passing yards a game, which is the 9th-fewest in the NFL.
With all this competition for targets, I don’t think this is a bounce-back spot for the rookie pass catcher.
The play: Emeka Egbuka Under 46.5 receiving yards (-110, DraftKings Sportsbook)
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Dylan Svoboda is a versatile writer and analyst across many sports. He’s particularly knowledgeable about the big three — MLB, the NFL and the NBA.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
