Buccaneers fantasy start/sit: Week 1

Buccaneers start/sit/flex

Cincinnati Bengals players to start against the Bucs

Why, player by player

• Baker Mayfield (Start): A defense that finished 32nd against the pass a year ago, playing its second season under the same coordinator, is exactly the kind of Week 1 matchup a quarterback coming off a down year wants. No new injury concerns have been reported heading into the opener.
• Bucky Irving (Start): Full-go and unrestricted entering training camp after his 2025 ankle and shoulder issues. Against a defense that struggled across the board last season, a healthy Irving in Week 1 is a clear start in all formats.
• Kenny Gainwell (Sit (deep-PPR flex only)): Profiles as Irving's change-of-pace complement rather than a true 50/50 split. Only worth a flex spot in deeper PPR leagues, and becomes relevant for real only if Irving's per-snap workload is managed early in the season.
• Chris Godwin (Start): Closed 2025 running a full route tree again with strong efficiency numbers, and no new injury has been reported for the opener. Against a defense that gave up plentiful yardage all of last season, a healthy Godwin is a comfortable start.
• Emeka Egbuka (Flex (pending injury report)): Dealing with a toe injury and questionable for the opener as of this writing. If active, he is Tampa's clear WR1 target-wise and worth starting; if limited or a late scratch, downgrade to the bench. Check Friday and Sunday morning designations before locking your lineup.
• Jalen McMillan (Sit): Uncertain for Week 1 with a knee issue on top of an already unsettled route in the offense after missing most of 2025 to a broken bone in his neck. Even in a plus matchup, this is too much uncertainty for a Week 1 start.
• Cade Otton (Flex (streaming option only)): A low-end streaming tight end against a defense generous to the position type in 2025, but not a must-start outside of deep or tight-end-premium leagues.
• Chase McLaughlin (Start): Plays in a game with a 51.5-point total on the road, in a dome-free but warm-climate kicking situation, a fine floor for a kicker who owns an NFL-record 65-yard field goal on his resume.
• Buccaneers D/ST (Sit): Streaming a defense on the road, in a game with the highest total on the opening week's board, against an offense that gets its franchise quarterback back for a full season, is a bad process even before results are in.
• Joe Burrow (Start (in any format where you own him)): Returns from his 2025 turf toe injury with a full offseason behind him, no new health concerns reported, and his customary Pro Bowl-level arm talent. Tampa Bay's secondary spent the offseason adding rookies, the kind of inexperience an elite quarterback in a plus matchup tends to exploit.
• Ja'Marr Chase (Must start): Caught 125 passes for 1,412 yards and 8 touchdowns in 2025 on his way to first-team All-Pro honors, and enters 2026 fully healthy. A locked-in start regardless of opponent.
• Tee Higgins (Start): Posted 59 catches, 846 yards and 11 touchdowns in only 15 games last season, a touchdown rate that makes him a weekly threat, with no reported injury concerns entering the opener.
• Chase Brown (Start): Finished 2025 as Cincinnati's entrenched starter, rushing for 1,019 yards on 232 carries and adding 69 catches for 437 yards, production that only improved as the season went on. Nothing about the Week 1 backfield picture in Cincinnati suggests that changes in 2026.

Full matchup: Buccaneers at Cincinnati Bengals. See the depth chart and the injury report for the latest before you lock your lineup.