Egbuka Cleared, McMillan Doubtful: Bucs WR Room Thins Out in Cincy
Emeka Egbuka's toe held up in three straight full practices, but Jalen McMillan (knee) is doubtful — clearing the WR2 target path in Cincinnati.
Full participant all week and a thinner WR room means volume.
- Egbuka: full practice 3 straight days, no injury tag
- McMillan doubtful with a knee injury
- McMillan limited in practice all week
- Tucker (hamstring) doubtful despite returning to practice
- Egbuka posted 194 PPR pts in 2025 (17 games)
The Buccaneers head to Cincinnati this weekend with their pass-catching depth chart looking a little lighter. Jalen McMillan is listed as doubtful with a knee injury after being limited in practice all week, while Emeka Egbuka carries no injury designation into Sunday and is set to play through the toe issue that nagged him during the preseason.
That's a meaningful split for fantasy purposes. Egbuka logged three straight full practices, a clear signal the toe is behind him. McMillan, meanwhile, is trending toward inactive — he managed only 12 catches for 178 yards and no touchdowns across four games in 2025 (30 PPR points), so his own value was already marginal, but his absence tightens the target tree around Egbuka.
Why This Helps Egbuka
Egbuka is our WR23 and No. 68 overall, coming off a 2025 rookie season (17 games) that produced 63 catches, 938 yards, six touchdowns and 194 PPR points. The one caveat: his last five games ran 6.3 fantasy points below his season average, so the form arrow was pointing down heading into this matchup. A depleted room is exactly the kind of thing that reverses that trend.
The backfield news adds to the picture. Sean Tucker (hamstring) practiced after sitting out Wednesday but landed on the doubtful list, and offensive tackle Justin Skule (oblique) is doubtful too. Tucker is our RB51 (No. 211 overall) after logging 320 rushing yards and eight total touchdowns for 91 PPR points in 2025 — fine deep-league depth, but not someone you're sweating in most formats.
The Fantasy Fallout
Start Egbuka with confidence. He's healthy, he's a full go, and McMillan's likely absence concentrates volume in a passing offense that needs bodies in Cincinnati. Drop McMillan if you're still rostering him in standard leagues — a doubtful tag on a fringe contributor isn't worth the bench spot. Tucker stays on the wire unless you're in a deep dynasty setup and simply monitoring the depth chart.
