Egbuka and the Buccaneers’ passing attack continues to hum along during the preseason.

Aug 9, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (9) looks on before a preseason game against the Tennessee Titans at Raymond James Stadium.

Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Emeka Egubka Hype Train continues to roll along, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers march through training camp and the preseason, and the Pittsburgh Steelers quickly discovered what he’s all about during Thursday’s joint practice.

Per reports, Egbuka continued to make plays throughout practice, which has become the norm. Last week, Egbuka roasted several Tennessee Titans cornerbacks during joint practice, including UDFA Clarence Lewis, and then proceeded to catch one of two targets for 21 yards during the Buccaneers’ 29-7 win in the first preseason game.

The Titans have an OK stable of corners, but none of them match up to the likes of Jalen Ramsey and Darius Slay. Even if both guys are on the back end of their careers, they can still play at a high level, and they’ve combined for 13 Pro Bowl selections and four first-team All-Pro nods.

Yet, they couldn’t stop Egbuka from making plays, especially the former in Ramsey. Sure, it’s great to see him beat lesser CBs because that’s what he’s supposed to do. But to see it against an accomplished veteran like that only adds more credence to the idea Egbuka is on track for a big season as a rookie.

“I think Emeka is going to play the same no matter who he plays against,” Todd Bowles told reporters after practice. “He’s that polished, and he wants to get better no matter who’s out there. Obviously, they’ve got some Pro Bowl corners over there, which is good work for us as well. That was good to see for him as well.”

“For me, personally, it’s an amazing opportunity,” Egbuka said when asked about going up against Ramsey. “I’ve been a big fan of him ever since he got into the league. I think he’s a great corner (and a) phenomenal player. Just being able to go against him and make myself better, because I know I’m going against the best of the best. . . being able to showcase my talents and test really who I am is what excites me as a competitor.”

Chris Godwin has yet to come off the PUP list, and he didn’t travel to Pittsburgh with the Buccaneers. Therefore, Egubka’s continued development should give Josh Grizzard and Baker Mayfield a big sigh of relief as they await the former Pro Bowler’s return from last year’s awful injury.

The rest of the Bucs receivers had a day, as well

Speaking of a hype train — it’s off the rails for Mike Evans, who once again looked like he was in midseason form. It’s simply amazing how good he’s looked as he enters his age-32 season. In fact, he was so good against the Steelers that Bowles went ahead and scratched him off the list for Saturday’s matchup.

It wasn’t just Evans and Egbuka making plays, however. Second-year wideout Jalen McMillan is looking to build off the hot finish to last season, and he certainly got some good work in on Thursday.

“I think ‘J-Mac’ (Jalen McMillan) had a ton of great plays,” said Egbuka. “But ‘J-Mac’ really stepped up big. He had one down the left sideline for a first [down] and 20 yards, and then another one on a tip drill against Jalen Ramsey. So, it got us the momentum going into the red zone, and then obviously we’re going to Mike [Evans] in that situation, and he was able to cap it off.”

In all, it was a good day of work for the Bucs. Evans and Baker Mayfield won’t play on Saturday night, per Bowles, but Egbuka and McMillan will get another good opportunity to log valuable reps as the preparation for the Week 1 opener, which is just a little more than two weeks away.

Stacking another good performance would be a big step toward putting themselves in a spot where they can hit the ground running against the Atlanta Falcons.