Enter rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have their first lead of 2025. Tampa Bay, saddled with poor starting field position, staggered through a scoreless first quarter. In the second period, the Bucs found their stride with running back Bucky Irving and ultimately Egbuka, who has the speed and quickness to play every receiver position.

Watch the video below.

SCORE: 10-7 Bucs

TIME: 6:53 2Q

DOWN/DISTANCE: 3rd-and-2 at ATL 30

THE PLAY: Egbuka ran what looked like a skinny post or perhaps a seam route, easily beating his Atlanta Falcons defender for a 30-yard touchdown catch.

The Bucs surprised some NFL Draft observers by taking the Ohio State wide receiver with their first-round pick. Tampa Bay already had Pro Bowlers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.

But Egbuka immediately opened eyes in the preseason with his route running and professional readiness.

“Egbuka is a route-running technician who has an innate feel for how to set up defenders with subtle movements at the stem,” Brianna Dix wrote for Buccaneers.com. “He was voted a 2024 team captain and joined (Marvin) Harrison Jr. as the only players in Ohio State history with multiple 1,000-yard receiving seasons. He is the Buckeyes' all-time leader in catches (205) and is able to adjust mid-air to haul in catches with ease.”

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” quarterback Baker Mayfield told the Tampa Bay Times. “And people are like, ‘You’re just blowing smoke.’ But truly, I’ve never seen a rookie handle things like he has. With (Jalen McMillan) going down, we’ve said (Egbuka) knows all three spots. But he truly knows all three spots, and for a rookie to handle that with all the motions, formations. But with the run-game blocking and little details, he’s so dialed in that truly I don’t know that I’ll ever see it again with a rookie like that.”

“He looks like a running back, but he catches like Chris Godwin,” fellow wide receiver Evans said. “He's a very polished, very well-rounded player.”

SCHEIBER'S TAKE: From John McKay to Leeman Bennett to Ray Perkins to Jon Gruden and now Todd Bowles, columnist Dave Scheiber has seen a lot of Bucs games — many of them bad. This team, Scheiber writes, can be a very good one. CLICK HERE

BUCS' 2025 SCHEDULE: Games, dates, locations, TV information, real-time results. CLICK HERE