TAMPA — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will open the regular season with two rookies starting on defense for the first time since 2023, listing 15th-overall pick Rueben Bain Jr. and second-round selection Josiah Trotter as starters on the Week One depth chart released ahead of the team’s opener in Cincinnati.
Bain, the Miami edge rusher, will start at outside linebacker opposite Yaya Diaby — a spot he has held since the team’s first preseason depth chart in August. Trotter, the Missouri inside linebacker, climbed from second on the depth chart behind SirVocea Dennis during the preseason to the first line next to veteran Alex Anzalone. If both take the first defensive snap, they will be the first rookies to start on defense for Tampa Bay since defensive lineman Calijah Kancey in 2023.
The offensive depth chart reflects a post-Mike Evans era after the franchise icon departed in free agency. Third-year wide receiver Jalen McMillan is now listed as a starter alongside Chris Godwin and Emeka Egbuka, though McMillan is currently dealing with a knee injury that could put his Week One status in doubt. McMillan returned from a preseason neck injury last year to produce a strong finish to his campaign for the second year in a row.
The starting offensive line of All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs, left guard Ben Bredeson, center Graham Barton, right guard Cody Mauch and right tackle Luke Goedeke is expected to open the season intact — a contrast from 2025 Week One, when Wirfs was unavailable due to mid-summer knee surgery and Barton shifted to left tackle for the first three games. Mauch returns to action after missing all but two games in 2025 due to a leg fracture.
Rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels, an undrafted free agent out of Kansas, earned the primary backup job behind Baker Mayfield after beating out veteran Jake Browning in training camp. Daniels is set to become the first undrafted rookie quarterback to open a season as his team’s primary backup since Seattle’s Trevone Boykin in 2016. The only other quarterback in the building is veteran Easton Stick, who is on the practice squad.
At cornerback, second-year man Jacob Parrish has locked up the outside spot opposite Zyon McCollum after spending most of his 2025 rookie season in the slot. Rookie Keionte Scott could become the Bucs’ fifth different opening-day slot corner in the last five years. The specialist unit returns intact with punter Riley Dixon, placekicker Chase McLaughlin and long-snapper Evan Deckers, while veteran running back Kenny Gainwell joins the kickoff return mix alongside Sean Tucker and third-year wide receiver Kameron Johnson.
The Buccaneers are scheduled to take the field for the season opener against the Bengals in Cincinnati on Sunday.