Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (2) scores a touchdown against Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Benjamin Morrison (21) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Danny Karnik)

ATLANTA — Another visit to Mercedes-Benz Stadium produced more lasting memories for Emeka Egbuka.

Only eight months after helping Ohio State win a national championship by beating Notre Dame, Egbuka grabbed the spotlight in his return to Atlanta for his NFL regular-season debut.

Egbuka caught two touchdown passes, including a go-ahead 25-yarder with 59 seconds remaining, and Tampa Bay recovered after losing the lead on a marathon drive by Atlanta to beat the Falcons 23-20 in a dramatic opening game Sunday.

“You can’t get much of a better ball than that,” Egbuka said about Baker Mayfield’s touchdown pass in the final minute. “… Obviously, it feels great to be able to help my team win.”

Egbuka, the first-round pick, had four catches for 67 yards.

“He’s everything we thought since he’s been here,” Tampa Bay coach Todd Bowles said. “He played with so much poise and Baker (Mayfield) played with so much poise.”

Mayfield said his adjustment with Egbuka as another top play-maker for the Buccaneers has progressed “extremely quickly.”

“Just the way he carries himself,” Mayfield said. “… As you guys saw today, he’s the real deal.”

Following Mayfield’s 25-yard pass to Egbuka, Chase McLaughlin’s missed extra point gave the Falcons an opening to force overtime with a field goal.

Michael Penix Jr., who capped an 18-play drive by scoring on a 4-yard run for a 20-17 lead with 2:17 remaining, moved the Falcons into field goal position in the final minute. Younghoe Koo was wide right on the 44-yarder, and his attempt wasn’t close.

“He missed it,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said. “I’m not going to sit here and pretend I can tell you about the technique and what happened with that miss. But we got to make those kicks. Those are very makeable kicks. We’ve got to lock in and get that done.”