Two Tampa Bay Buccaneers legends left the organization this offseason, as Lavonte David decided to hang up the spikes after a rough and painful 2025 NFL regular season, while iconic wide receiver Mike Evans criticized the fans and abandoned them for another NFC playoff contender in the San Francisco 49ers.
Evans was still crucial to the Bucs and the team was hurt by his injury last season, but as much as Bucs fans still respect the former first round pick out of Texas A&M, their own 2025 first round pick out of Ohio State, Emeka Egbuka, is a strong reason why they are not super worried.
In fact, Buccaneers fans think they will be even better on offense without Evans thanks to Egbuka, a healthy Chris Godwin Jr., two more potential breakout star wide receivers alongside Egbuka in Jalen McMillan and Tez Johnson, and rookie third round pick Ted Hurst.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a great group of WRs
The fans are not the only ones who are not sweating Mike Evans leaving Tampa Bay. Lavonte David himself went on The Jim Rome Show, via Sleeper Bucs, and said that while, truthfully, no one player can replace what Evans brought, the collective can be even better for the Bucs,
“You've got a receiving room who can fill the void of losing Mike Evans. You won't say everyone can replace Mike, but it's a collective group that can do a lot of great things."
That is precisely what Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans have been saying about their wide receivers heading into the 2026 NFL regular season. Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan have the quality to become better than the 2025 version of Evans within the next few years, and veteran WR1 Chris Godwin Jr. was already one of the league's best and has only lost that status because of injuries.
The big benefit that the Buccaneers have, too, is their depth. They are going to be the deepest they have been since probably the Tom Brady Super Bowl year at wide receiver. And if one of Ted Hurst or Tez Johnson can be an explosive, playmaking threat as the No. 4 wide receiver, the Bucs will have more than just a trio of playmakers around Baker Mayfield to burn defenses.
As the real best years of the New England Patriots with Brady at the helm in the 2010s taught the world, depth at the pass catching positions is even more important than the biggest star on the team.
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