Tampa Bay Buccaneers

A 'Z' for Zac: Bucs Streamline Plan for Emeka Egbuka in Robinson's Offense

After a standout debut season that asked a lot of a rookie receiver, Emeka Egbuka will have a chance to make even further strides in Year Two as he settled into a specific role in Zac Robinson's new offense

May 12, 2026 at 02:54 PM

Senior Writer/Editor

By just about any measure, Emeka Egbuka's rookie season for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was a rousing success. Egbuka led the team with 938 receiving yards and finished second in the NFL among all rookies in that category while scoring six touchdowns and averaging 14.9 yards per grab. He finished fifth in the Offensive Rookie of the Year voting and was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month in September. Egbuka played in all 17 games with 13 starts and generally built expectations for a very productive NFL career.

With some time reflect on these achievements, they almost seem even more impressive when one considers the level of difficulty Egbuka faced in his early days as a pro. Seen as almost a luxury or future-based pick when the Buccaneers picked him 19th overall, he became the focal point of the team's passing attack almost immediately thanks to injuries to Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan. Egbuka never got to settle into one primary role; instead, the Bucs varyingly needed him at all the receiver spots, which is a significant mental burden to put on a rookie.

Thus, there is reason for optimism that Egbuka can take his production to an even greater level in his second season, particularly if he is allowed to focus on mastering one specific position. And that's precisely what the Buccaneers plan to do in 2026.

On Tuesday, after the first of a series of 10 OTA practices the Buccaneers will hold over the next three weeks, Offensive Coordinator Zac Robinson discussed a variety of topics, including Egbuka's role in the new offense he is bringing to Tampa.

"We'll settle him into one spot, kind of our 'Z' spot, but again in some instances he might look like he's playing the 'X,' in some instances he might be the 'F' just based on the formation and how you can move him around," said Robinson. "But Mek, just getting to know him the last handful of weeks, it's incredible just how – I know I keep throwing the word 'intentional' around but that is him to a 'T.' A lot of work and preparation that he puts into it – he's very similar to a Cooper Kupp, just in terms of the way his brain works with the game of football and his natural instincts."

In the NFL, the 'Z' or flanker receiver usually lines up off the line of scrimmage on the outside, often on the same side as the tight end. He's more likely to go in motion than the 'X' receiver and, ideally, he has the versatility to make plays outside or over the middle. With Egbuka in that role, Chris Godwin would likely operate out of the slot, where he has done the best work in his career, and the Bucs would get snaps at Z from McMillan, Tez Johnson and rookie third-rounder Ted Hurst.

"It will be good to be able to kind of settle him in at one spot," said Wide Receivers Coach Bryan McClendon. "Mek obviously is an extremely talented guy. He's extremely everything, when it comes to talented, smart, all of that stuff. He checks all of those boxes. Because he does that, you have a tendency to use him as much as you can. He got put in a position that, quite frankly, we leaned on him probably more than we should have early in his career. It was nobody's fault – guys got banged up and he was the best guy there so we were trying to do a bunch with him. One, to be able to get a lot of those guys back around him, that's going to help him out a lot, too. And two, he has a whole season of training for this deal."

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TAMPA, FL - January 27, 2026 - Offensive Coordinator Zac Robinson of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and his family arrive before his introductory press conference at AdventHealth Training Center. Photo By Tori Richman/Tampa Bay Buccaneers