Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Emeka Egbuka

Friday, May 2, 12:02 PM

Carolina Panthers veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen said that he talked with his family, and they wanted him to play in 2025. He plans to go through a similar process after this season, which is the final year of his contract. Depending on how the 34-year-old feels and what his family thinks after the 2025 campaign, Thielen could hang up his cleats and retire. He's returning for a third season in Carolina after playing in a career-low 10 games in 2024 due to a hamstring injury. In those 10 games, he caught 48 of his 62 targets for 615 yards and five touchdowns. He should continue to be a trusted weapon for young quarterback Bryce Young out of the slot this year, but the addition of first-round rookie wideout Tetairoa McMillan will surely make Thielen harder to trust as a WR3/flex in fantasy based on volume alone like he was in 2023, when he recorded the third 1,000-yard season of his career on 103 targets.

Friday, May 9, 12:17 PM

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed first-round rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka to a four-year, $18.1 million contract on Friday, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Despite the fact the Bucs still have Mike Evans and Chris Godwin (ankle), they elected to take Egbuka out of Ohio State with the 19th overall pick in this year's NFL draft. The 6-foot-1, 202-pound 22-year-old is versatile and can move around the field, but he could struggle for volume in his rookie season in 2025 as long as both Evans and Godwin stay on the field. The addition of Egbuka is bad news for second-year pass-catcher Jalen McMillan. Egbuka was highly productive for the Buckeyes, setting a school record of 205 career catches for 2,868 yards and 24 touchdowns in 49 games. He should be the favorite to be Tampa's WR3 this season and will be a very attractive dynasty/keeper draft pick for the long term.