It wasn't a single play that can be blamed for what happened to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, but there are certain moments that sting a little more in hindsight.
One of those came late in the game, when Emeka Egbuka looked as much like a rookie as he has all season. He let a walk-in touchdown pass slip through his fingers, one that would have tied the game and potentially given the Bucs another last-minute surge toward victory.
Instead, the ball sailed through his hands, which had been so reliable all season, and tumbled toward the ground. That's what the Bucs are doing after an unforgivably bad 24-20 loss, as the season is officially on the brink in ways it hasn't been before.
There's still time to turn things around, but that drop is one that Egbuka made clear will stick with him for a while.
Emeka Egbuka had the saddest reaction to his critical dropped pass in Buccaneers' loss in Week 14
After the game, Egbuka spoke with the media and was brutally honest. Not about how the team played or how much the upset loss stung, but specifically about how he felt he had let the team down by not reeling in that game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
“It’s a huge honor to play for this team and be a part of this brotherhood,” Egbuka said. “I can’t help but feel I let them down today. I’m on this team for one reason and it’s to catch the ball. I didn’t.”
Bucs rookie Emeka Egbuka on his dropped pass in the end zone that would’ve given the Bucs the lead in the fourth quarter. “You know, I can’t help but feel I let them down today. I’m on this team for one reason and it’s to catch the ball.” pic.twitter.com/goVGKvGYCP
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) December 7, 2025
Egbuka has been one of the brightest parts of an otherwise stormy season for the Bucs. It wasn't that long ago he was leading Rookie of the Year conversations, and the show he put on alongside Jaxon Smith-Njigba up in Seattle remains one of the best games of the season.
Since then, he's taken a step back and Egbuka has looked mortal on more than one occasion. Part of that has to do with rookie growing pains flaring up, but it's also worth noting the extreme stress being put on him right out of the gate.
When he was drafted the idea of Egbuka playing on the same field as Mike Evans and Chris Godwin was electric to imagine. That hasn't happened yet, even though we're through 14 weeks of the season. Not a single game has seen all three players healthy and on the field at the same time and the loss of offensive weapons like Evans, Godwin, and Bucky Irving has forced the Bucs to rely on Egbuka as though he were a veteran and not just half a season into his career.
That's not an excuse for any dropped passes, something Baker Mayfield refused to shield the rookie from with his postgame comments, but it's a reminder that this isn't a massive concern. It feels a lot worse in the moment, but we've seen what Egbuka is capable of and the fact that he's going to carry the weight of dropping that pass suggests we could see him ferociously bounce back to who he was earlier in the year.
Tampa Bay will need it now more than ever. With just four games left, the Bucs are tied with Carolina for first place and in danger of falling out of the playoff picture. Winning the next three games will clinch a fifth straight division title, though, and it sounds like Egbuka isn't going to let his brutal drop in Sunday's loss go to waste.