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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers shouldn’t ever be surprised by the production they get from veteran wide receiver Chris Godwin. Still, what he’s done so far in the 2024 regular season has been remarkable.
Godwin, who is in his eighth season, is working on his fourth consecutive season with at least 1,000 receiving yards and through 6 games in 2024, he leads the Buccaneers and is third in the NFL with 43 receptions for 511 receiving yards and 5 touchdowns.
Godwin’s latest virtuoso performance came in a 51-27 win over the New Orleans Saints in Week 6, with 11 receptions for 125 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a thrilling, 55-yard catch-and-run touchdown in the third quarter.
Bleacher Report’s Matt Holder predicts that Godwin, who is in the final year of a 3-year, $60 million contract, will sign with the NFC West’s Arizona Cardinals when he becomes an unrestricted free agent following this season.
“While wide receiver won’t be a top need in Arizona this spring, the club is currently projected to have nearly $120 million in cap space during the offseason, per Over The Cap,” Holder wrote on October 14. “So, the front office can splurge for an elite talent. Also, the team has four wideouts who are impending free agents, meaning they’ll need some depth there anyway. Godwin can operate out of the slot while Marvin Harrison Jr. and Micheal Wilson are on the outside. Plus, the eight-year veteran would be a good mentor to have for (Harrison).”
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Price Continues to Climb for Godwin
Because of his play, Godwin has become a more expensive option for the Buccaneers, who declined to give him a contract extension in the offseason.
Spotrac currently has Godwin’s market value at a 3-year, $56.7 million contract — meaning he could likely get the same deal he has now which would be a windfall for a player approaching his 30th birthday and closing in on a decade in the NFL.
Godwin can look on his own roster for what he might be able to garner in free agency, as longtime teammate and fellow wide receiver Mike Evans landed a 2-year, $52 million contract with the Buccanners this past offseason.
Godwin Subject of Trade Rumors in Offseason
Godwin spent most of the offseason as the subject of trade rumors, and ESPN’s Aaron Schatz singled out the Buccaneers securing an extension for Godwin as the most important move the team could have made before training camp.
“Godwin’s contract voids after the 2024 season, but let’s not overthink this,” Schatz wrote. “He’s absolutely an above-average NFL starting wide receiver and someone Tampa Bay wants to keep around.”
Godwin was drafted by Tampa Bay in the third round (No. 84 overall) out of Penn State in 2017 and had a breakout season in 2019 with career highs of 1,333 receiving yards and 9 touchdowns on 86 receptions in 14 games, earning NFL All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors for the first time.
Godwin missed 4 games due to injuries in 2020 and had 65 receptions for 840 yards and 7 touchdowns in 12 games, but returned for the Buccaneers’ run to a Super Bowl title and had 16 receptions for 232 yards and 1 touchdown in four postseason games.