Egbuka and McMillan are back at practice, six days before Cincinnati

Monday was a holiday for most of the country, but at One Buccaneer Place it was a full-squad practice, the first of Tampa Bay's game week for Cincinnati. Two names missing from that field for most of camp were back on it: wide receivers Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan both stretched with the team and ran routes in team drills for the first time in weeks. Tampa Bay Times reporter Rick Stroud, along with several other outlets on hand, confirmed both were on the field, alongside offensive tackle Justin Skule. Running back Sean Tucker did not practice, sidelined by an undisclosed injury.

Head coach Todd Bowles kept his read on the two receivers brief. Speaking to reporters after practice, he said the two "ran around pretty good" and that the staff would see how the week goes before saying more.

Egbuka's toe

Egbuka's absence traced back to August 12, when he hurt his foot during Tampa Bay's first joint practice with the New York Jets and limped off without returning. The toe was diagnosed as a sprain, and Egbuka had not practiced in the weeks since. He was Tampa Bay's first-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft, taken 19th overall out of Ohio State. Monday marked his first practice reps since the injury.

McMillan's knee

McMillan's issue is a knee problem that had lingered since training camp, without a single dramatic moment attached to it the way Egbuka's toe had. It follows a much scarier injury from a year ago: in Tampa Bay's second preseason game of 2025, against the Pittsburgh Steelers, McMillan fell awkwardly onto the back of his head and neck while going up for a catch. What was first called a severe neck strain turned out to be a fractured neck, and it cost him the first 13 games of the 2025 regular season. He returned for the final four games of the season, which made his health this preseason worth watching closely.

Godwin held the room together

While both receivers were out, it was Chris Godwin, one of Tampa Bay's six named captains for 2026, who carried the position group. Godwin has his own recent injury history: a dislocated ankle ended his 2024 season early, and a fibula injury limited him to nine games in 2025. He finished last season with 33 catches for 360 yards and two touchdowns in nine games, modest numbers by his own standard but enough to keep the room steady with Egbuka and McMillan sidelined. As Chris Godwin is now the last man standing from the old Bucs core detailed, he is also the last player left from the core that won a Super Bowl in Tampa, which has made his availability doubly important this preseason.

What it could mean for Week 1

If Egbuka and McMillan are both trending toward playing, the passing game Bowles and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson can call against Cincinnati looks different than it would have a week ago. Instead of leaning further on Tez Johnson, Kameron Johnson and rookie Ted Hurst III to cover for two missing starters, as BucsWorld outlined in Where the Buccaneers' injury picture stands ahead of the opener at Cincinnati, Tampa Bay could open the season with something closer to its intended three-man rotation of Godwin, Egbuka and McMillan.

None of that is official yet. Tampa Bay's first injury report of the week is due Wednesday, September 9, and that document, not a Monday practice window, is what will start to define who actually suits up six days later when the Buccaneers open their season at the Cincinnati Bengals.