Fantasy Football Player Notes

Emeka Egbuka's rookie season was a rollercoaster, but the underlying usage points toward a major Year 2 breakout in Tampa Bay. The former Ohio State standout earned elite target volume for a rookie and looked like a future star early in the season before injuries and shifting usage slowed his momentum late in the year (top-10 WR from Weeks 1-11). With Mike Evans gone, Egbuka is positioned for a much larger role in Zac Robinson's offense. He is one of the more appealing second-year breakout WR candidates in fantasy football.

Bucky Irving had a sophomore season to forget. He was limited to 10 games because of injury - and he was wildly inefficient. He posted the 4th-lowest rushing success rate, finishing third-worst in YPC (3.4). The second-year RB scored one rushing TD in 2025.
Even with Rachaad White all but gone in free agency, Todd Bowles' other favorite RB, Sean Tucker, might continue to rear his ugly head again near the goal line in 2026. Not to mention, Kenneth Gainwell will also be vying for targets after signing with TB in free agency. Irving probably wasn't the same guy returning from injury as the first four weeks of the season; he was extremely productive, averaging 15.6 PPG. But after his return, he just had 10.2 PPG playing in a broken Bucs' offense.

Chris Godwin's last two seasons have been derailed by injuries, and 2025 raised additional concerns about potential age-related decline entering his age-30 campaign. Even when healthy, Godwin struggled to command high-end volume or efficiency in Tampa Bay's crowded receiving corps. Still, the veteran remains an important part of the Buccaneers offense and flashed signs of life late in the year with a strong Week 17 performance. If fully healthy entering 2026, Godwin could rebound into fantasy relevance, although his ceiling appears much lower than it was during his prime seasons.

Kenneth Gainwell was an integral part of the Pittsburgh backfield last year for the entire season, but he really hit his stride in Weeks 11-18 as the RB7 in fantasy points per game with 13.3 touches and 85 total yards per game. His passing game was robust during this stretch as he was third in target share (17.5%), second in receiving yards per game (45.4), fourth in yards per route run (2.10), and first in first downs per route run (0.116, per Fantasy Points Data). That also isn't to say that he wasn't also fantastic on early downs, ranking 14th in explosive run rate and missed tackle rate overall for the season among backs. Gainwell will play a prominent role for his new team (Tampa Bay) this season as a complement to Bucky Irving. Irving has had a substantial list of injuries that he has dealt with during his short career, so I wouldn't be surprised if Gainwell is leading the backfield some weeks in 2026 with a solid standalone role when Irving is active. Gainwell could easily return RB2 value in 2026 if everything falls in his favor. He definitely carries more fantasy appeal in PPR formats, though.

This is a crossroads year for Baker Mayfield, who went from QB3 in fantasy points per game in 2024 to QB19 last season. Mayfield's completion percentage fell from 71.4% in 2024 to 63.2% in 2025. He went from 7.9 yards per pass attempt in 2024 to 6.8 yards per attempt in 2025. Injuries may have been at least partly to blame. WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin each missed about half the season. WR Emeka Egbuka started fast, then hurt his hamstring and fell off dramatically. The Buccaneers' offensive line was banged up early in the season. Mayfield himself dealt with a shoulder injury. Mayfield had a good season with Dave Canales as his playcaller in 2023 and an even better season with Liam Coen as his playcaller in 2024. Mayfield had a disappointing 2025 season in tandem with Buccaneers offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard. Now he gets his fourth playcaller in as many seasons, new Buccaneers offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. A bounce-back season for the 31-year-old Mayfield is entirely possible, but we probably shouldn't assume he'll return to his 2023-2024 form.

Jalen McMillan's 2025 season was essentially wiped out by injury, but the flashes he showed in limited action — and previously as a rookie — remain intriguing. The former Washington product continued to post strong efficiency metrics when healthy, highlighted by a huge Week 17 performance and over 2.0 yards per route run in a small sample. The issue has never really been talent; it has been availability. McMillan remains an upside stash in deeper formats, but fantasy managers need to factor in the growing injury concerns entering Year 3.

The Buccaneers' Chase McLaughlin ranked seventh in kicker scoring last year after ranking sixth in 2025. McLaughlin made 32-of-38 FG tries last year, an 84.2 conversion rate, but he had converted at 93.5% and 93.8% in 2023 and 2024, respectively. The 30-year-old McLaughlin has hit 119-of-122 extra points over the last three years. Some fantasy managers might appreciate having a warm-weather kicker whose home games are in Florida and whose only potential cold-weather games are Week 9 in Chicago and Week 14 in Baltimore.

Cade Otton has had 59 receptions in each of the last two seasons. He finished with 572 receiving yards and one touchdown last year, leading to a TE25 fantasy finish. Otton has had spurts of serious fantasy value in the past, usually when one or more of the Bucs' top pass catchers were hurt. When Buccaneers WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both went down with significant injuries in Week 7 of 2024, Otton had 30 catches for 293 yards and three touchdowns over a four game stretch. In Otton's other 10 games that season, he had 29 catches for 307 yards and one touchdown. With Evans now in San Francisco, perhaps Otton will play a bigger role in the Tampa Bay offense this year. But Otton profiles as no more than a high-end TE3 and isn't draftable in most fantasy leagues.

Ted Hurst is one of the more intriguing Day 2 receivers from the 2026 class after dominating at multiple collegiate stops and testing like a true NFL athlete. The Buccaneers landed a size-speed prospect with legitimate downfield chops, as Hurst led the FBS in deep-ball production while showcasing strong contested-catch ability and red-zone upside. Tampa Bay offers a realistic path to early playing time with Mike Evans gone, giving Hurst an opportunity to compete for outside snaps immediately. He may be somewhat raw entering the league, but the athletic profile, target-earning ability, and landing spot make Hurst an appealing upside bet for both dynasty and deeper redraft formats.