Still Bullish On Jalen McMillan
May 15th, 2025
Future use.
The Bucs very easily could have the best group of wide receivers in the game. When healthy.
So if Chris Godwin is good to go, who becomes the No. 3 receiver? Is it Jalen McMillan, who proved strong in the final weeks of the season when he went off?
Or is it first-round draft pick Emeka Egbuka?
Ben Solak of BSPN is a fan of Egbuka, but says do not forget about McMillan.
… McMillan is a savvy route runner with better speed than he’s given credit for, and he has some spectacular catch ability in him. I still believe in the player, even if the opportunity for high volume is vanishing.
The opportunity for high volume isn’t vanishing. Rather, Joe believes, it is on hold.
First, Godwin’s recovery timetable is a complete unknown. The Bucs, in the wake of the draft, have waffled about Godwin being game-ready by Week 1. So until he is, McMillan is in line for a lot of playing time.
When Godwin returns, that is when the fun begins. If it’s not Week 1, then Joe guesses the Bucs will ease Godwin into the lineup if they’ve been winning, rather than throwing him into the fire and expecting him to take a full-time load of snaps and the physical punishment that comes with it.
As for the future, if Godwin cannot return to his normal self, the Bucs have an out clause after the 2026 season. Plus, Evans’ future is unclear as he’s now in a contract year. McMillan and Egbuka could be the Bucs’ top two receivers by next year, though Joe sure hopes not.
While Joe can see Solak’s point that McMillan may get fewer targets, that is quite possibly a temporary lull for McMillan.
May 15th, 2025 at 4:59 am
4 WR sets with Bucky or White in the backfield will be fun!
May 15th, 2025 at 5:19 am
It’s good to have depth, the Bucs probably won’t have to have practice squad-level receivers start like they did (for a time) last year. As far as McMillan’s stats go, I don’t care, I want the Bucs to win games.
May 15th, 2025 at 5:36 am
Can’t forget about Jalen, true that. He did pretty well last season. Hope Godwin is good to go before week 4.
May 15th, 2025 at 7:18 am
@joebucsfan, Joe it was reported earlier this year we would have a joint practice against Baltimore. Did that get canceled? Is there anyway the Buffalo preseason game is actually Baltimore?
No. Logistics and NFL approval killed it. Very rare for a team to play a preseason game against an in-season opponent, but that’s how it went down.–Joe
May 15th, 2025 at 7:24 am
I like Jalen, but get some rip in those arms, son!!
May 15th, 2025 at 7:42 am
@ Steven. Add Cade Otton to the mix and watch out! Defenses around the league have been warned!
May 15th, 2025 at 7:45 am
Of course!
He really came on as a slick route runner with great hands !
May 15th, 2025 at 8:02 am
I’ll take Trask over a washed up reject QB that’s bounced around the league.
May 15th, 2025 at 8:12 am
I am skeptical that we will see all 4 wrs healthy at the same time based primarily on Godwin/Evans age. Also, Egbuka was hurt most of his jr year at OSU and came back for a healthy senior year. If we can get 3 of the wrs to be healthy for any one game, I will be thrilled.
Based on what we have seen from other OSU wrs in past decade and EE was right up there with the best of them, I believe he will be at worst the #3 wr. And honestly, based on his blocking ability on running plays, I would actually have him start the game. It may be time to save wear and tear and Evans/Godwin and having them rotate in on running plays and utilizing both in the lineup on obvious passing situations. I would much rather have Godwin/Evans play their normal volume of snaps by being healthy for all 17 games then over loading them on 30 running plays and them having to miss 3 to 4 games each!
May 15th, 2025 at 8:26 am
Agreed Joe. The future is bright and McMillan will have to wait to get all the catches he is capable of.
Go Bucs!
May 15th, 2025 at 9:29 am
Still gonna need a true X receiver for when Mike retires
May 15th, 2025 at 10:09 am
It’s still all about Mayfield. We keep him standing- and he’s gonna make all of our receivers look like Pro bowlers.
I’m really interested to see how our TE room plays this year.
Otton definitely took a step forward. I hope Durham and Culp are improved this season. One weakness the offense had was lacking that 2nd TEfor two TE sets.
Hopefully, both are even better this season.
May 15th, 2025 at 10:13 am
I hope we find Mikes protege in the 1st round next year.
I want to draft a 3rd young WR next year while we have the depth at other positions.
May 15th, 2025 at 10:14 am
Wow the off season has been excellent!!! We’re now down to just two troll click baits…obviously Coach Bowles and right behind him our QB Baker Mayfield.
Let the trolls continue to embarrass themselves with their negativity. It’s getting pretty hard to ignore what is becoming OBVIOUS to most.
As Timbuk 3 sang back in the 80’s..”The Future’s So Bright I Gotta Wear Shades”
May 15th, 2025 at 10:15 am
Gussie- no doubt. Never seen a team with so many slot receivers. Which, fine. It’s more of an observation because if we’re averaging 30 then I don’t care. But – part of the reason why a lot of our slot guys will be running “wide ass open” is because Mike Evans has that Steph Curry effect, he commands soooo much game planning and attention and makes the offense better. Will need a true outside guy. Although I will say Emekas’s ability to line up outside may be a bit understated because he only moved to slot to accommodate Jeremiah Smith, who may be the second coming of freaking Randy Moss. He may be the most gifted wr college football has seen in a long time. Emeka still has requisite speed and good size. I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of him being a #1
May 15th, 2025 at 10:21 am
Not really. The message has been pretty clear and remains consistent — the goal is week one, but they’re not going to force it. What has changed?
May 15th, 2025 at 10:43 am
Greatest Show on Turf receivers:
Isaac Bruce 87/1,471/9
Tory Holt 82/1635/6
Az-zahir Hakim 53/734/4
Ricky Proehl 31/441/4
Even with Bruce and Holt combining for over 3,000 yards, Hakim and Proehl combined for almost 1,200. There should be plenty of opportunity for MacMillan.
May 15th, 2025 at 11:00 am
I feel good about the fact that all 4 WRs have the ability to get open as needed.
Most teams do not have 3 stud CBs to handle this situation. Normally it’s just 1. A few teams have 2… but these 4 can make an elite CB look less elite.
I look forward to pre-season just to see a whole lot of Jalen, Emeka and Tez showing what they can do (along with our defensive rookies)… even if the games are pretty much worthless. I will attempt to watch all the preseason games with more intent than usual due to this draft class. I remembered hope building last year during preseason watching Bucky get his 4.44 yards per carry, and not behind our best O-line, either. Now with 2 new receivers, an edge guy whose been raved about + an edge/DT and a couple new ball hawks… a bit more to see IMO.
May 15th, 2025 at 11:06 am
Hearing Ricky Proehl’s name is still triggering.😡
May 15th, 2025 at 11:31 am
In order to use the stellar WR core, you have to keep the defense off the field.
Something that just isn’t taking place on a regular basis.
Especially in games that matter the most.
Game 1 vs the Falcons is basically a playoff game for all purposes.
If the pass defense fails to improve again, it might be time to discuss “options”.
Mark my words.
May 15th, 2025 at 12:56 pm
The Bucs have the talent they need.
The Bucs have most of the playbook they need.
If the offense is healthy, the success of the offense will likely come down to play calling.
Hopefully, the Bucs have studied the offensive debacles that cost them key games last year: 6 points scored against the Broncos; 20 points against the 49ers; 24 points and missed opportunities against the Cowboys; 20 points against the Commanders in the playoffs.
With winning play calling, McMillan will put up good numbers because winning play calling is motion, play action, and spreading the ball around.
With winning play calling, including getting White and Tucker into the mix and sometimes having two RBs on the field, I think that Evans and Bucky are more likely to miss out on thousand yard seasons because of the ball being spread around than McMillan is likely to see a big decline in production.
But, if the upgrades in the secondary mean more possessions for the offense, there is still hope for the thousand yard seasons.