In the end, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egubka had a rookie year that couldn’t be denied.
The NFL placed Egbuka on its list of NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year finalists on Thursday — one of 3 finalists from the NFC South Division along with New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough and the favorite, Carolina Panthers wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan.
The other 2 finalists were New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart and New England Patriots running back Treveyon Henderson.
Egbuka and Henderson were teammates on Ohio State’s College Football Playoff National Championship Team in 2024.
“Our guy is a finalist for AP Offensive Rookie of the Year,” the Buccaneers wrote on the team’s official X account.
Egbuka led the Buccaneers with 63 receptions for 938 yards and 6 touchdowns wile playing in all 17 games. He was also one of 2 Buccaneers to make the NFL All-Rookie Team on Wednesday alongside cornerback Jacob Parrish.
The Buccaneers made a surprise move to select Egbuka in the first round (No. 19 overall) of the 2025 NFL draft when all signs pointed to them picking a defensive player.
“That’s a little bit of a surprise,” ESPN’s NFL draft host Mike Greenberg said after Egbuka was selected. “But a terrific player.”
“I call him a professional receiver,” ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. said. ” … that workmanlike, that professional approach.”
Egbuka’s Numbers Fell Off Cliff Down Stretch
When Egbuka, the No. 19 overall pick, caught 6 passes for 113 yards and 1 touchdown in a Week 10 loss to the Patriots, he was third in the NFL with 40 receptions for 677 yards and 6 touchdowns — he wouldn’t have another 100-yard receiving game or score another touchdown the rest of the season.
McMillan didn’t overtake Egbuka for the rookie receiving lead until the 2 teams faced each other in the Week 18 regular season finale — a game in which he had 4 receptions for 85 yards to finish the season with 70 receptions for 1,014 and 7 touchdowns.
Egbuka had his worst game of the year in Week 18, with 1 reception for 8 yards.
“Honest to God, what the hell happened with Emeka Egbuka?” Dynasty FF Wolf wrote on X. “This falloff needs to be studied in universities across the nation.”
“Name me another player who started off on fire then fell off a cliff as hard as Emeka Egbuka,” The Fantasy Football Dad wrote on X.
“I’ll never forget you, Weeks 1-5 Emeka Egbuka,” Sleeper NFL wrote on X.
“Emeka Egbuka: a tale of two halves,” Fantasy Football analyst Joshua Cho wrote on X. “The rookie came out HOT, scoring 5 TDs in his first 5 games as a NFL WR. After that, though the tgts stayed promising, there was a pretty big drop off in production with Egbuka (just 1 more TD). I still trust the talent.”
New Offensive Coordinator Takes Over for Bucs
Egbuka’s honor comes on the same day he and the rest of the Buccaneers got a new offensive coordinator in Zac Robinson, who takes over after Josh Grizzard was followed after one season.
“Staying in the NFC South: Buccaneers are finalizing a deal to hire Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson as their offensive coordinator, per sources,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on his official X account on Thursday, January 22.
Bucs Rookie WR Emeka Egbuka Gets Good News From NFL