Emeka Egbuka Talks Worn Down Legs
February 21st, 2026
Joe already wrote about how Emeka Egbuka admitted to crashing into the famed rookie wall last season. Egbuka, though, also noted a couple of weeks that really illustrated his struggles.
Egbuka told SiriusXM NFL Radio that his rookie wall issues were signficantly more physical than mental. And yes, for some rookies it’s a mental struggle, whether it be constant adjustments, dealing with losing they weren’t used to in college, or just not being used to intense focus for so many weeks.
Egbuka noted how he came out the bye week on fire against New England. Joe will note that Egbuka faded after that.
“One of the best weeks for me was the bye week and to be able to [get] off my legs,” Egbuka said.
“And then you know, I come off the bye week and I exploded after that, too. Even learning your process in recovery and everything like that is a very valuable lesson that I learned. Because now I know how to take care of my body the best way so I’m able to perform.”
The Bucs’ 2025 first-round draft pick had six catches for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Patriots on Nov. 9. the game following the Bucs’ bye. That was his last score of the season, and his final eight games included 21 catches for just 261 yards.
Joe thinks it’s telling how Egbuka referred to the bye as a “best” week and that he fell off two weeks after the bye.
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February 21st, 2026 at 11:11 am
I kept seeing Baker force it to him over and over, even tho he had little/no separation
February 21st, 2026 at 11:16 am
Beee, that’s because he was the only one remotely open. Great Offensive scheme, exceeded only by the defensive scheme.
February 21st, 2026 at 11:29 am
Everytime I see his 938 yards total i cringe. Cant believe he didnt get that 1k.
February 21st, 2026 at 11:43 am
Patriots game is when Ben Bredeson initially went out with his hamstring injury. It was the end for the offensive line since Mauch was already out for the year.
Offensive line shredded=no time for passes to Egbuka. Or much of anything else…
February 21st, 2026 at 12:07 pm
Nutterbuccer Says
“Everytime I see his 938 yards total i cringe. Cant believe he didnt get that 1k.”
I feel the same way. They should have made sure he got the 1K. He can never fix that now.
February 21st, 2026 at 12:12 pm
All rookies hit a wall at some point. Some do it quickly, some take a little longer.
The way through the wall is forcing your way through it, but rookies don’t always understand that.
The other side of it is a rookie year is when they learned the areas they need to improve. Good mentors help guide them through the following off season. Mike Evans is a good Mentor. JPP was a good mentor (and worth hiring in that regard).
We do not have good mentors across the board though…so we need to figure that out.
It’s the very first thing to deal with in player development. Once they figure out that stuff, they start to figure out the pro game.
In Tampa, you have the added heat factor…which is a wall in and of itself.
February 21st, 2026 at 12:22 pm
Sore hands, tipsy on the accolades and clearing room on his mantle for the ORY award. The drop off mirrored the team collapse.
February 21st, 2026 at 12:41 pm
@Stpetematt spot on. Which is why I won’t be sad if we draft a guard at 15. Do Seattle win without Zabel? Probably not.
February 21st, 2026 at 1:38 pm
I like how people pretend the issue wasn’t Baker, who couldn’t even get the ball in the zip code of his receivers from about week 7 to week 17. Gee, I wonder why his production went down. Meanwhile, go watch the tape and how many times he was open where Baker massively overthrows him.
The issue was Baker. 100% on Baker.
Good news, if it was injury, then the issue will correct itself. Well until he has a bad game, at which point we’ll learn he’s ‘injured’ yet again.
February 21st, 2026 at 2:55 pm
Baker’s poor performances were not Todd Bowles’ fault. Oh, and Egbuka is the reincarnation of Michael Clayton only without the blocking.
February 21st, 2026 at 3:01 pm
No wonder rookies hit a wall, especially receivers. With all the practices, then the games, then bowls games depending how far they go, then training for the Westminster, I mean combine, then training camp, no wonder they’re shot. This time off will help heal the legs and get ready for 1 year instead of 1.5 of straight football.
February 21st, 2026 at 4:07 pm
Aqualung – e2 is not Michael Clayton, they’re not even the same type of player.
e2 is much more athletic for one. He had a RAS score of 9.27, which is elite, while Clayton had a 7.45 score, which is pretty middling actually.
Clayton was bigger and slower, and played that way. Also I’m almost certain Clayton put on weight – which in large part why he was such a good blocker. He never had any separation, and as he got larger, he got even slower – at least that’s how I remember it (it was 20 years ago now, which is amazing).
e2 is much more shifty, a much better route runner, very precise and I’d say has better hands overall. The comparisons to Godwin before the draft are well founded, he’s a very similar style of player and is going to be become an top end NFL WR if he can get consistent QB play.
One thing that really popped out last year, however, was how fantastic McMillan looked, and how explosive he looked after he returned. Not sure if he actually lost weight, or just got better with another year under his belt, but he looked great at the end of the year. It’s going to be exciting to see how he does without Teddy throwing him hospital balls and putting him in the IR.
February 21st, 2026 at 4:27 pm
So what was baker’s excuse??? We need a new QB!
February 21st, 2026 at 5:41 pm
Munch. I just learned Baker Mayfield jersey sales are among the highest in the league. Number one in Tampa. I guess Evans is in a rather distant second place behind Baker. Man, America loves Mayfield! It’s like he’s single-handedly putting the Bucs on the map!! Must feel great being a long time Tampa resident and having a QB creating national buzz like only the Bake can do. Stuff like that happens when a dude gunslings his way to 2nd most tds in the league over a 3 year period. Too bad we had to spend fortunes on wussies like Mike and Chris and Mauch and Tristan JMac and Goedecke and Bredeson and Bucky and Calijah who sat watching most of the action from the sideline. Someday Baker might play for a football team full of football players rather than has been amateur’s. At least Lavonte played most of the snaps. He was a great ILB. I’ve been told. Any QB that could take that offense to a .500 record should have been an all pro. The Bucs are gonna have to pay him a ton. But don’t worry Rod. They will. I mean I assume the team would rather stay at least relevant?
February 21st, 2026 at 5:49 pm
He needed more time to get open?
Not a good sign
February 21st, 2026 at 6:10 pm
And Rod Munch. Maybe calling last year’s Bucs amateurs was a bit harsh? No it wasn’t. The pros know job number one is being on the field. When you have 80 million dollars worth of talent on their butts on the sidelines replaced by 8 million dollars worth of talent replacing them it’ll blow up in your face every time. And our defense also sucks. Add special teams to that and I’m just glad Baker (the touchdown maker) Mayfield has been here helping keep this ship afloat in Tampa.
February 21st, 2026 at 8:38 pm
Sooo I thought the complaint was too many walk throughs? Tetairoa McMillan isn’t talking about a rookie wall. No more excuses this team is too soft
February 22nd, 2026 at 7:19 am
^^^^^^
i think i see the ghost off ryan miller sitting next to the eggman
February 22nd, 2026 at 7:32 am
don’ sleep…
mike moves jerseys, and yes, so does baker…but mike might sell more, unless there was a recent change…
and bucky also moves jerseys…people want bucky big time too
February 22nd, 2026 at 2:24 pm
And the world-wide most popular way to wipe is by using your hand.