Emeka Egbuka Receiving Yards Pick for Buccaneers vs. Cowboys

A year can make all the difference in football. Through the first four weeks of his rookie season in 2025, Emeka Egbuka was averaging 70.5 receiving yards and 1.0 receiving touchdowns per game, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were 3-1. Over the remainder of 2025, though, he averaged just 50.5 yards per game and caught only two total touchdown passes as the Buccaneers went 5-8. So far in 2026, he’s averaged fewer than 40 yards per game while only finding the end zone once, with Tampa Bay languishing at the bottom of the NFC at 0-4.

The Buccaneers won’t have much time to recover from last Sunday’s 17-14 defeat to the Green Bay Packers, as they’ll be back in action tonight at 8:15 p.m. ET as Tampa Bay faces the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football.

The Buccaneers are 8.5-point underdogs for tonight’s game at DraftKings Sportsbook (+360 on the Moneyline), with the point total set to 48.5. Dallas is -470 on the Moneyline.

Below, I’ll break down Egbuka’s receiving yards prop bet for tonight’s intra-conference affair.

Emeka Egbuka Receiving Yards Prop Bet vs. Cowboys

Emeka Egbuka U35.5 Receiving Yards (-112)

Egbuka has gone over this prop twice and under it twice this season, but he’s coming off of one of his quiet performances, a two-catch, 13-yard affair against the Packers. None of Tampa Bay’s receivers thrived in that game, as tight end Cade Otton led the team with just 37 receiving yards and Chris Godwin turned his team-leading six catches into only 31 yards. Green Bay has a decent secondary, as cornerback Keisean Nixon and safety Xavier McKinney both have at least one All-Pro First Team selection, but it wasn’t an encouraging performance nonetheless.

Individually, Egbuka hasn’t been that much worse in 2026 than he was in 2025, as he’s actually produced 0.6 more yards of average separation per targeted route this season than last and recorded only a slightly worse Pro Football Focus grade. He also struggled with drops in 2025 but hasn’t dropped one yet this season. But he can’t do it alone, and Jalon Daniels simply hasn’t proven anything as a quarterback. Despite an ultra-conservative game plan in Week 4, Daniels went just 19-for-27 for 148 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions, completing just two passes longer than 10 yards in the air. Instead of targeting Egbuka, who’s predominantly a deep threat, I expect Daniels to prioritize Otton and Godwin again in the offense.

To be fair, the Cowboys’ issues in the secondary have continued this season, as they’ve allowed the ninth-most receiving yards to wide receivers from the 10th-most yards per catch, and they’re the only team not to record an interception so far. However, Dallas could be on track to improve even without cornerback Cobie Durant (out), as DaRon Bland has shown a higher level in the past than he’s produced this season, and new acquisition Joey Porter Jr. allowed just a 57.2 passer rating in 2025. Rookie safety Caleb Downs has also impressed so far.