Emeka Egbuka has looked like he is going to be one of the future weapons of the Bucs offense. The pick that shocked everyone in round one is looking like a homerun through four weeks of the season, as the former Ohio State Buckeye is among the league leaders in several categories.
But of course, there is always more to see besides what the box score and TV tell us. To get some added context, we can turn to Pro Football Focus for that.
PFF’s Dalton Wasserman took a deep dive into the work of all 32 first-round draft picks who played in Week 5 this past weekend. PFF offers us some deeper insight into the performance, and Wasserman was able to lay out what Egbuka’s work looked like.
Wasserman writes, “Egbuka turned in an otherworldly performance against Seattle this week, leading the NFL with 163 receiving yards and earning an outstanding 86.9 PFF receiving grade. His five receiving touchdowns this season are tied for the second most, and he ranks seventh among qualified wide receivers in yards per catch (17.8). Egbuka has been immensely valuable to Tampa Bay’s offense early in the season and may currently be the frontrunner for Offensive Rookie of the Year.”
For this game, he earned a grade of 88.9, but on the season, he has a grade of 75.3, which is the best in this rookie class. A pick that many were confused by has now become a home run selection for general manager Jason Licht. The only bad part of this pick is that it now creates an interesting dynamic for Mike Evans, who is playing on the last year of his contract.
Will he replace the Hall of Famer he was drafted to play alongside? Time will tell, but for now, he is playing out his mind and the Bucs are enjoying every minute of it.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: What did PFF think of Bucs’ Emeka Egbuka in Week 5 against the Seahawks?
Reporting by Andrew Harbaugh, Buccaneers Wire / Bucs Wire
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