Benjamin Chukwuma’s first start of the year came at the right moment for Tampa Bay.
With Luke Goedeke out in Week 7, the Buccaneers second-year tackle stepped in at right tackle and helped pave the way for a massive ground game in the 43-13 win over the Panthers. Tampa Bay rolled up 258 rushing yards, and head coach Todd Bowles made it clear he saw Chukwuma as a key part of that effort.
“I thought Chuk did a great job,” Bowles said, via Gabriel Kahaian of the team’s site. “I mean, 258 yards rushing, all those guys up front did an outstanding job.
Chuk with his first start this year coming in, did an outstanding job. He’s got great size, an athlete and he’s strong so the run game kind of benefits him.”
Chukwuma, who originally signed with Tampa Bay as an undrafted free agent in 2025, said the moment hit him hard after the game.
“It felt amazing,” Chukwuma said. “ Being able to be a part of a group that put those big numbers up is crazy.
It’s amazing. It’s a blessing.
After the game, I was just calling my folks, telling them how happy I was, how fulfilling it is. It’s just a blessing.”
He said the experience he picked up as a rookie gave him a much different mindset entering this season.
“ Last year, I was able to get into some games,” Chukwuma said. “I was able to learn, I was able to grow from the games I had played. I feel like coming back for my second year, I came back with a lot of confidence since I’ve seen a little bit of what the NFL is like and I know I can be in it.”
The Buccaneers didn’t just run well - they controlled the game from the opening series. Carolina linebacker Bobby Okereke said the tone was set immediately by Tampa Bay’s 14-play opening drive, which ended in points.
“I mean, kudos to them. They got off to a really good start.
Anytime on defense you start with a 14-play drive, and they score, that’s not the tone you want to set for the rest of the game, and they fed off that momentum,” Okereke said, via Kassidy Hill of the team’s site. “And we saw they had that momentum all day today.
When you’re not creating any negative plays, and you’re allowing them to get three, four yards a carry, against an offense like that, it’s tough.”
Bucky Irving was at the center of it, finishing with 106 yards and two touchdowns against a Panthers defense that never found a way to slow Tampa Bay down. Okereke said the Buccaneers’ approach was a problem from several angles.
“I thought they had a good scheme,” Okereke said. “Some of the gap scheme stuff, some of the pullers, you know, getting to the edge, making the corners tackle.
It’s a multitude of things: tackling, not getting knocked back up front. If everybody’s just stalemates and you’re fighting your block, the running back’s going to fall forward for three or four yards, which is a positive play from the offensive standpoint.”
Panthers defensive lineman Derrick Brown also admitted they didn’t handle Irving well enough.
The win gave Tampa Bay a dominant rushing performance, and Chukwuma’s first start played a noticeable role in it. In the aftermath, Bowles praised the line, Chukwuma talked about how far he’s come, and Carolina was left to sort through how it let the Buccaneers dictate the game on the ground.
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