The Carolina Panthers have a massive NFC South Division game on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 7.
A season ago, these were the two teams who competed late for the division title, and the expectation by many this year was that this duo would fight for the NFC South crown again.
Their first chance to directly impact one another’s season comes on Sunday when they meet on the field.
At least one key player won’t be on the field, though: Emeka Egbuka.
Egbuka is the star second-year Tampa Bay wide receiver out of Ohio State, but the Bucs will go without him on Sunday.
Why Isn’t Emeka Egbuka Playing Today?
Egbuka isn’t playing on Sunday because he’s injured.
The Bucs officially ruled him out 90 minutes before kickoff:
Bucs inactive players today vs Carolina: WR Emeka Egbuka, T Luke Goedeke, S Antoine Winfield (injured)); G Billy Schrauth, DL DeMonte Capehart, CB Ayden Garnes.
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) October 25, 2026
Egbuka went into concussion protocol following Week 6, and he didn’t get ready in time to play this week.
It takes one weapon away from Baker Mayfield, who is making his return to the field for the Bucs after missing time while backup QB Jalon Daniels started. Mayfield will be wearing a special glove on his right hand to protect his thumb:
Here is the glove #Bucs QB Baker Mayfield will wear to protect his dislocated thumb, with thanks to the @RaysBaseball training staff. https://t.co/nUtenahRUy
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 25, 2026
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Bucs WR Depth Chart
OK, so who will the Panthers have to deal with?
The most familiar name to Carolina fans is veteran wide receiver Chris Godwin, who will be one of Mayfield’s top targets on Sunday.
The other top WR available for the Bucs will be Ted Hurst III. Hurst won’t be familiar to the Panthers, as he was a third-round draft pick in 2026 out of a small school, but he may make his mark on Sunday’s game.
The Buccaneers will also have three other wideouts available to them: David Sills V, Tez Johnson and Kameron Johnson.
Panthers Inactives
The Panthers have seven players inactive on Sunday.
The most notable is Jaelan Phillips, the star pass rusher, who is out with injury.
The Panthers’ other inactives are AJ Dillon, Ja’Tavion Sanders, Stone Forsythe, Sam Hecht, TeRah Edwards and Haynes King, who is the emergency third quarterback.
The Panthers also remain without cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson. Both are still on IR, leaving Carolina quite shorthanded in the secondary for yet another week.
Panthers Get Injury Announcement On Bucs’ Emeka Egbuka