Fantasy Football Stock Watch: Emeka Egbuka Comes Down to Earth, but Not Worth Panic

Emeka Egbuka has struggled in recent weeks, following his surging start to the season. Fantasy football managers should consider his true value going forward.

Sep 21, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (2) receives a pass against the New York Jets in the second quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The month of September had come with its own share of fantasy football breakout items. The biggest name of all was that of rookie wide receiver, Emeka Egbuka. Over his first five games, Egbuka had five total touchdowns. Since then, he has 9 total receptions in his last three games and zero scores. We must now reevaluate Egbuka and determine his rest-of-season value.

2025 Stats: Emeka Egbuka

Over 8 games played, Egbuka has 61 Targets, 34 Receptions, 562 Yards, and 5 Touchdowns. That puts him as the WR5 in Fantasy Football, behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba, George Pickens, Ja'Marr Chase, and Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Over Egbuka's last three games, he has 25 Targets, 9 Receptions, and 0 Touchdowns.

Why the Struggles?

It is very clear that Egbuka still has the target share that he had demanded in his first five games. We can expect that this will not change with Evans and Godwin injured. The issue is that of the lack of execution. He is catching well below 50% of targets in the last three weeks. Let's go game-by-game.

In Week 6, the Buccaneers faced the 49ers. This game was a outlier as Mayfield passed the football just 23 times. In fact, they ran the ball just 26 times. This makes for 49 total plays, outside of any sacks. That is an extremely low number, but the Buccaneers did score 30 Points, so this was just a whacky game. Egbuka did have 4 Targets.

In Week 7, the Buccaneers faced the Lions in primetime. Egbuka did have 12 Targets, but caught just 4 Balls. This was a game where the Lions shutdown the Buccaneers for 9 Points. Mayfield threw 50 passes, but completed just 28. We can mark this up to a combo of poor team performance, and a bad one by Egbuka.

In Week 8, the Buccaneers faced the Saints. Contrary to popular belief, the Saints have played stout defense considering what they have for talent. Egbuka had 9 Targets, but caught 3 Balls. Mayfield threw 24 passes, but no receiver had more than 43 yards. The Buccaneers did cause four turnovers, so that tends to change the offensive game script.

Is It Time to Panic on Egbuka?

It is clear that Egbuka is playing worse football of recent. He has also been dealing with a hamstring injury. As the Buccaneers enter a bye week, Egbuka should come out of it in full-healthy form. Watchout for a breakout game in Week 10.

Emeka Egbuka before suffering hamstring injury:
18 fantasy PPG

Emeka Egbuka since returning from hamstring injury:
6.4 fantasy PPG pic.twitter.com/nOaKZk5Xsm

— Yahoo Fantasy Sports (@YahooFantasy) October 26, 2025

Egbuka has had the targets all season long, but that means nothing if they are not reeled in. He does remain the WR1 for Mayfield and will command the value as so. Mayfield is playing poor football of recent so it is a two-way street. We expect the efficiency to trend back upwards after the bye.

I would not quite panic on Egbuka, but I would recognize that our Top-5 Wide Receiving output may be past us. Egbuka is more of a WR2 with WR1 upside on any given week. I believe that his value will continue to be like that. He will average out as a WR10-15 overall. You still got fantastic value in Egbuka if this is the case.

Buy or Sell: Emeka Egbuka

Egbuka was a fantastic value pick when it came to drafting a team. It would be irrational to trade him away. Any trade you will make likely comes with added risk and a gamble for upside. Egbuka has the best upside of anyone. There is unlikely anyone worthwhile more than Egbuka. I would hold onto our guy.