Star second-year WR Emeka Egbuka will not be cleared from concussion protocol in time for Week 7’s contest vs. division rival Carolina. Egbuka is coming off of his two best games of the year, putting up over 17 PPR points in each contest.
Baker Mayfield will have Chris Godwin and rookie Ted Hurst as his top two WR’s in his return from a 3-game absence due to a thumb injury. Cade Otton has also historically risen to the occasion when the Buccaneers are missing starting WR’s. Fantasy football managers should have optimism Egbuka will play next week but will still need to watch practice reports.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie wide receiver Ted Hurst has a ...
After recording 71 catches for 1,004 yards and six ...
After racking up nearly 2,000 receiving yards over his final...
Tom Pelissero of The Ringer reports there is optimism for Bucs QB Baker Mayfield to return in Week 7 from his thumb injury. Week 6 will be his third missed game and initial reports said he’d miss a minimum of 3 games.
While Mayfield got off to a so-so start prior to getting hurt, his return will provide a big boost to all Buccaneers weapons. Rookie UDFA QB Jalon Daniels has filled in admirably, but at this stage does not work through his progressions which limits opportunities for the receivers, as evidenced by his 15 scrambles over the past 2 weeks. Hope abounds anew that Emeka Egbuka can return to his early 2025 form, Chris Godwin can get back to producing consistently and rookie WR Ted Hurst can make some noise. Fantasy football managers will need to monitor the practice reports next week to see if Mayfield will indeed be able to return next week.
Buccaneers 3rd-year WR Jalen McMillan reinjured his PCL and will be placed on IR and is expected to miss 6-8 weeks, per Rick Stroud. This comes on the heels of QB Baker Mayfield being ruled out for at least 3 weeks with a dislocated thumb.
McMillan has shown some flashes, scoring 7 TD’s in the final 5 games of his rookie season in 2024, but between a neck injury that sidelined him for all but 4 games of the 2025 season and this year’s knee injury, he has been usurped on the depth chart due to his inability to stay healthy. This will hurt rookie QB Jalon Daniels as he prepares to start in Baker Mayfield’s absence, but rookie WR Ted Hurst should continue to see a healthy workload alongside Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin.
Jalen McMillan will suits up against the Browns, but the metrics indicate his production will be limited by a low snap share and a prior knee injury.
McMillan is not startable in fantasy football, but his presence moderately reduces the projected target share for Chris Godwin and Ted Hurst.
Jalen McMillan and Sean Tucker miss Week 1, as Tucker deals with a hamstring strain while McMillan recovers from a knee injury and targets a Week 2 return. McMillan logged limited practices before being ruled doubtful.
Rookie Ted Hurst steps into expanded target volume, making him a viable tournament option for daily fantasy contests.
Baker Mayfield was set to be a free agent after the 2026 season but will now remain a Buccaneer through his age 34 season. Baker’s performance last year took a hit as he played through numerous nagging injuries, ranking 22nd with a 93.5 True Passer Rating. He is a year removed from ranking 5th with a 105.4 True Passer Rating, while throwing for 4500 yards and 41 touchdowns.
This is excellent news for Baker Mayfield, as well as the rest of the skill position players on the Buccaneers. Fantasy football managers no longer need to worry about what a post-Mayfield Buccaneers offense might look like. Mayfield was an early-season MVP favorite last year before a list of nagging injuries took their toll. He is ranked PlayerProfiler’s QB22 for redraft rankings but can easily climb the ranks if he returns to form in 2026.
