Rookie Rueben Bain Jr. Starts Week 1 as Bucs Get Good Injury News vs. Bengals
A first-round rookie earns a starting job right as two veteran receivers clear the injury report.
Rookie pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr., the 15th overall pick, has been installed as a Week 1 starter, with the Buccaneers getting encouraging injury news — receivers Jalen McMillan and Emeka Egbuka are both practicing — ahead of a road trip to face Cincinnati.
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Running back Sean Tucker is a game-time decision. Rookie linebacker Caden Fordham rejoined the practice squad after a strong preseason, giving Tampa Bay real depth insurance at a position that thinned out during camp.
Bain, 21, earned the start off a genuinely dominant final college season at Miami — 54 tackles, 15.5 for loss, and 9.5 sacks in 2025 alone, good for consensus All-America honors and ACC Defensive Player of the Year. Head coach Todd Bowles has been effusive about the rookie's early transition, saying, "His professionalism has been off the chain, and his intelligence to the game and his work ethic has been outstanding." Quarterback Baker Mayfield, 31, is the bigger question mark: he posted the worst completion rate, fewest yards, and fewest touchdowns of his Tampa Bay tenure last season while playing through a bruised throwing arm, a sprained MCL/PCL, and shoulder issues, and now has to replace his leading touchdown target, Mike Evans, in a brand-new offense under coordinator Zac Robinson. Tampa Bay made a real, franchise-defining bet on him anyway: on the eve of the season, the Buccaneers signed Mayfield to a new deal through 2029 worth $55 million per year, the largest contract in franchise history and enough to tie him with Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, Jordan Love, Trevor Lawrence, and Matthew Stafford as the NFL's third-highest-paid quarterback behind only Patrick Mahomes and Dak Prescott.
Tampa Bay has drawn widespread skepticism from analysts and oddsmakers after missing the playoffs for the first time since 2019, with many projections placing the Buccaneers near or below .500.
We're ready to surprise some critics this year.— Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers quarterback
Our take: Bain looks like a real, immediate difference-maker regardless of how the offense sorts itself out — a 21-year-old posting All-America numbers as a pure pass rusher is the kind of talent that doesn't need a break-in period. Mayfield's bounce-back case is real too, if health cooperates, but "if health cooperates" is doing a lot of work after a season this banged-up. Replacing Mike Evans' production in year one under a new coordinator is its own real challenge, separate from Mayfield's health, and a road trip to a Bengals offense that can score in bunches leaves little margin for a slow start on either side of the ball.
Week 1 Prediction: Score, Spread & Player Prop
Bengals -3.5 home favorites at Paycor Stadium (moneyline -198, Buccaneers +164), per ESPN and SI.com.
Total sits at 51.5, the highest of any Week 1 game. Our pick: Bengals 30, Buccaneers 27 (Over).
Rueben Bain Jr. OVER 0.5 sacks in his NFL debut. A 9.5-sack final college season doesn't typically go quiet in Week 1, even against NFL tackles.
Odds and props reflect market consensus across DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM as of this week — lines move, so check your own sportsbook before kickoff.
Bucs' Week 1 picture takes shape
Buccaneers select Rueben Bain Jr. 15th overall.
Bain Jr. named a Week 1 starter; McMillan and Egbuka both practicing.
Buccaneers host Cincinnati to open the season.
A real rookie starter and two cleared receivers give Tampa Bay a genuinely healthy look heading into Week 1.
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Sources: Buccaneers.com, AtoZ Sports, CBS Sports