Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Tez Johnson came into the 2026 NFL regular season as a bit of an afterthought, especially nationally. Most of the attention was placed on former 100-catch guy Chris Godwin Jr., possible breakout first rounder Emeka Egbuka, a new rookie in Ted Hurst, and another potential breakout with a high draft pedigree in Jalen McMillan. And even Cade Otton was getting some love with Zac Robinson as his new offensive coordinator, fresh off a fat contract in the spring.
But so far, Johnson has been the only wide receiver on the Buccaneers exceeding expectations. With McMillan injured again and Egbuka admittedly struggling to be efficient with fewer than six yards per target, Johnson is averaging nearly 14 yards per target and has been the biggest playmaker at the position.
Tez Johnson COOKS Daron Bland. Bland is the 10th highest paid CB in the league pic.twitter.com/vJ8R6BQMiJ
— Justin Penik (@JustinPenik) October 9, 2026
To evidence that, Johnson had a monster 64-yard gain against the Cowboys, even though that was his only catch. That play was a huge positive for the Buccaners, it sparked the whole offense, and it played a massive role in the Bucs getting that 24-16 win over Dallas.
Buccaneers WR Tez Johnson made the most of his opportunity vs. Cowboys
Johnson only had that one target, but he sure made the most of it, and he already came into the game with the highest yards per target even before this monster play. What he has shown is that the Buccaneers need to get him the ball more, because he can get open down the field and in short spaces with the ball in his hands.
The other thing to point is that while the catch came because Johnson was wide open, he should get credit both for being the one to get that open and for the fact that he is able to make plays and take advantage of the focus on Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin Jr.
Instead of forcing the ball to Egbuka when he isn't even averaging 10 yards per reception, the Buccaneers can feed Johnson for bigger plays, and then that can help Egbuka garner less attention and more productive targets when he does get the ball.
There is a lot to benefit from Johnson getting more involved, and with the running game looking as great as it did against the Dallas Cowboys and Bucky Irving getting well over 150 yards on the ground, having that kind of vertical threat like Johnson to take the top off the defense and complement the smashmouth, three-headed beast of a running back crew is a lethal combination to defenses.
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