Free Agency Approaching
January 31st, 2022
Keeping Chris Godwin.
Tomorrow is Feb. 1. Maybe it is just Joe but January seemed very long.
Maybe it was the un-Florida-like gloomy cold the past couple of weeks? Maybe it was no Bucs football for a week?
So why is Joe bringing up tomorrow’s date? Well, Feb. 1 means free agency begins in six weeks, the two-day window to negotiate opens March 14. On March 16, free agents can put their John Hancocks on a piece of paper for a new contract.
(The NFL Scouting Combine begins March 1, as documented by the NFL. Now a lot of folks call the TV show broadcast on NFL Network as “the combine.” That’s not the combine. That’s the TV show. Joe has no idea when that begins and doesn’t really care. Joe’s about football, not indoor track practice.)
Kevin Seifert of BSPN ranked the top free agents. At No. 4, he has Bucs receiver Chris Godwin.
For most of the history of NFL free agency, a late-season knee injury while playing on the franchise tag would have been a massive blow to market value. Now, it is a significant but not necessarily insurmountable obstacle to securing a lucrative deal. The most recent example is Titans linebacker Bud Dupree, who signed a five-year deal with $33.7 million fully guaranteed in 2021 while rehabilitating a torn ACL. (His three-sack season could also give some teams pause, though.) Fully healthy, Godwin would be one of the stars of this class. But even with a torn ACL and sprained MCL, he is an attractive option.
It is for this reason Joe thinks the Bucs can keep Godwin. Sign him to a two- or three-year deal with an out after the first year to cover the team if Godwin doesn’t recover — but also an option to allow Godwin to make bank if he balls out and is fully healthy.
Keeping Godwin is a two-way street. As Joe is typing this here post, Tom Brady’s retirement decision is unknown. Joe believes Brady doesn’t come back unless the Bucs give him assurances that Godwin and Ryan Jensen will return. And Joe doesn’t believe Godwin will return unless Brady is back — or the Bucs swing a deal for someone like Derek Carr.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:01 am
This guy should be number one on our list. Not that we must have him.. no one is indispensible…but we certainly need him. Bigtime.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:05 am
Well, I think all this Brady ESPN Man in the arena, shaked things up…..
A lot of stuff will be comming for sure…Hope CG is a Buc next year….
January 31st, 2022 at 9:06 am
Godwin is back literally no matter what. You can bet on that. He loves it here and they love him here.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:07 am
Godwin is worth more to the Bucs than any other team……we will get him at somewhat of a discount because of his injury…..
I think Godwin wants to stay a Buc no matter the QB situation…..
He could have avoided this situation if he had negotiated a long-term deal last year instead of forcing the franchise.
We like to resign our draft picks (except QBs)….so, I suspect Cappa, Davis & Whitehead will be high priorities also.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:08 am
Whats a Glazier to do?
January 31st, 2022 at 9:17 am
Hey Joe…It is still January! LOl the longest month. Cheer up Groundhog Day is right around the corner.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:18 am
the hard truth is:
if brady is gone, and godwin is not resigned, the bucs will have money for basically everything they want to do…
if brady leaves, you let godwin go too, because of the huge contract, combined with the relevant knee issue…you walk away from him like brady walked away from the bucs…i hate to say it but it’s reality…love godwin…i thinks he’s similar to kupp and deebo – but it is what it is…business…
^^^ this applies to godwin only with trask as a 2 year starter experiment ^^^
hopefully things end civil with tom and you bring his salary down to league minimum before he goes – so you have 20 mil in cap money to play with…plus 15-20 mil in cap money to play with for godwin being in, say…philly or baltimore…
it’s becoming a sh!tty time to be a bucs fan…lol
January 31st, 2022 at 9:20 am
remember only few weeks back, the saying was:
“it’s a good time to be a bucs fan” 🙂
January 31st, 2022 at 9:22 am
I keep seeing the name David Carr on this website. Why would the Raiders trade him?
January 31st, 2022 at 9:26 am
and if you don’t lock in cd3…and with the salary cap going up…
it will give the team a lot of flexibility to reload rather than rebuild…
so brady, godwin and cd3 essentially logjam other spending potential…
3 players gone and i’m guessing there is a ton of spending flexibility…
just sayin’
but yes i want all 3 players to remain buccaneers
January 31st, 2022 at 9:26 am
Must sign Godwin and Jensen.
I really want them to sign Fournette.
I defense I think whitehead and Davis must be signed I also think Gholston needs to be retained.
I think Suh, Rojo, Howard, Cappa probably walk or are not offered a contract.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:27 am
2023 Deebo Samuel becomes a free agent. His 2021 salary was $4,000,000.
Rams have Cooper Kupp locked in until 2024 at $15,000,000 per year.
Bucs have to be very careful with Godwin’s contract. Based on his value, anything over $18,000,000 per year is overpaying him. If he comes back with the same abilities and production, he is worth his market value. If another team were to offer him much more, the Bucs should be very wary because it isn’t a sure thing that he will be able to stay away from serious injury the way the team uses him.
After watching these playoffs, you have to say that Cooper Kupp is far and above the best route runner to have played in the NFL in the past 10 years.
He cannot be covered, last 2 playoff games would not have been won by the Rams if he hadn’t made all of those brilliant moves to get open.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:28 am
CG would be nice. But not at any price. Perriman has shown signs of brilliance under the Bucs staff. He would certainly be a cheaper option. As would Grayson. I think k we will be okay at receiver. Dumb luck and some head hunting by a now retired coach kept us from winning the Superbowl this year. Focus on the Lines on both sides of the ball and all will be well.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:28 am
And Daniel… I keep seeing the name Aaron Rodgers… but why would we want to sign the Prima Donna, that would require us to no resign most of our FA, and eventually a third of our good players to sign him, plus draft picks?
January 31st, 2022 at 9:35 am
I highly doubt anyone is coming via trade because the qbs that people are talking about there is no options behind them so it doesn’t make sense to get rid of them and they also cost to much to acquire it will be either a free agent or what they already have anything else is just wishful thinking.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:38 am
You can forget about Derek Carr Josh McDaniels is the new head coach. So Mc knows Carrs capabilities and hes not going anywhere this year.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:38 am
I swear. Godwin ain’t going nowhere. Already read that he loves Tampa and wants to come back. Brady shouldn’t be the only reason why he would return. Environment, teammates, coaches, and hopefully understanding the grass isn’t always greener.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:51 am
Many assumptions here, to assume any of our top FAs want to return to a rebuilding team is a major assumption, Trask and Gabbert may very well be 1A and 1B at QB. Rojo and Fournette most likely gone, Jensen only has a few years left, Godwin wants a decent QB most likely, the discounts are over, Whitehead criticized Bowles on Twitter and deleted it after final game. Carlton Davis will want top money, BA could still leave, I think we are headed for a total rebuild to some degree.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:51 am
What are the chances of Brady playing next year if Bucs let either Jensen or Cappa go and don’t sign an equivalent replacement? Same question as it pertains to Fournette?
The OLine is a priority or watch the dominos fall..
January 31st, 2022 at 9:52 am
January flew by for me. I can’t believe it’s February tomorrow.
January 31st, 2022 at 9:55 am
If Brady retires anyone know our cap space.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:08 am
PETITION TO GET 1 MORE YEAR FROM TB12^^
January 31st, 2022 at 10:09 am
SRY JOE
January 31st, 2022 at 10:12 am
One name I see coming up for QB possibilities is Watson……..have we absolutely no shame?
January 31st, 2022 at 10:13 am
If we don’t resign CG, we’d need to acquire someone exactly like him. Evans just doesn’t have his versatility
January 31st, 2022 at 10:26 am
Smart move for Godwin is force the Bucs to tag him again….he’ll get $18-$20 million guaranteed and hit free agency with no strings attached next year. If not, one of these teams with a young QB that is developing will pay him royally. He’s a team first, well rounded WR that loves the game and produces at a high level. Philly, Jax, NE and the Jets come to mind. He’s got “street cred” having a SB ring and having played with Brady, Evans, Gronk…even AB.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:31 am
Agree that the Bucs ‘can’ keep Godwin, just not sure we’d really want to. Price will obviously play a big part in that decision, and I doubt that the Bucs will be in any rush to sign him. Hunch is that we’ll let him test free agency to see what value other teams place on him (we can always match it IF we choose to).
And I can’t see Godwin’s re-signing being tied to Tom Brady returning or us trading for Derek Carr. Even IF Brady doesn’t retire this year, he’d more than likely do so next year. And Bucs trading for Carr may sound good, but not gonna happen in 2022. MAYBE though we could sign him in 2023 when he becomes a FA.
This year will be an ‘experimental’ year presuming that Brady does retire. BA MIGHT choose to go with Trask (to see what he’s got); he MIGHT choose to go with Gabbert (and put our money into fixing other positions); or BA MIGHT sign someone like Teddy Bridgewater.
All of us are just guessing at this point. The only thing we know for certain is that if Brady really does retire, things will change in Bucsville. And probably change quite a bit.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:33 am
2021 season was an injury riddled year and our first priority is to sign a injured player.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:35 am
Go get andrew luck resign godwin.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:35 am
Yikes…
The worst thing about opinions is that everyone has one. So so many erroneous ones in player evaluation, scheme, philosophy.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:44 am
I’m talking about the future of the franchise. Godwin is one in a million, all around, professional WR. We’re not trying to find a guy that ends up doing jumping jacks. Cappa is another young, talented player on the Bucs oline, especially next to Wirfs. Jensen has one or two, very expensive years left. Whitehead, Davis, Suh.
Give Trask the chance to see what kind of QB he is in his second year, picked in the second round. Get us a Burrow. If he is not the type of QB we need,we can attend to that down the road because this list of the available QBs is effing clown shoes.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:45 am
I’m talking about the future of the franchise. Godwin is one in a million, all around, professional WR. We’re not trying to find a guy that ends up doing jumping jacks. Cappa is another young, talented player on the Bucs oline, especially next to Wirfs. Jensen has one or two, very expensive years left. Whitehead, Davis, Suh.
Give Trask the chance to see what kind of QB he is in his second year, picked in the second round. Get us a Burrow. If he is not the type of QB we need,we can attend to that down the road because this list of the available QBs is effing clown shoes.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:46 am
The Patriots will sign him.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:46 am
Joe Says:
As Joe is typing this here post, Tom Brady’s retirement decision is unknown.
—
Really? Don’t we know at this point it’s only about when and how, not if?
He gets $15 million of deferred salary on Feb 4. That might be a good reason to delay an announcement when it seems all but certain.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:47 am
Maybe Brady is on a conference call with Licht & Lynch trying to trade Jimmy G and Brady straight up.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:48 am
sassquatch,…. the update on that is that it is a guaranteed portion of his salary. So whether he does it before on or after Feb. 4th, makes no difference financially to Tom.
January 31st, 2022 at 10:53 am
I am not in the have to resign Ryan Jenson crowd. There is a young guy there named Robert Hainsey who may be ready to step up and take over that role. If not then you better do everything you can to sign Jensen. Godwin needs to be back along with Carlton Davis. As for the rest of the free agent defensive backs let them sign elsewhere if they can get paid. Those guys are pathetic along with the defensive coordinator. Keep hoping someone will make him a head coach again but if they watched the last game they won’t come within miles of him. The defensive game plan was an abortion. You mean to tell me the 49’ers secondary is that much better than ours or did they just have a competent defensive coordinator.
January 31st, 2022 at 11:06 am
You’re funny….TBBF at 10:12.
ZERO CRIMINAL charges have been filed. ZERO. A man’s PRIVATE life became public, when the first two women wanted money from him, and confidentiality after the fact, he said no to anonymity. They used the only legal recourse they could to publicly disparage him, and make a cash grab. THEN…the other twenty women are all collectively represented by the slimy Buzbee attorney out of Houston. Look him up, his past.
School yourselves on the legal field folks. Oh, how’s your ..private life TBBF?
ZERO CRIMINAL indictments filed. If, when, two or more are filed, go to trial, then folks can have an educated and principled conversation.
Deshaun Watson is 10 times the talent that Winston is. Remember all that.
How bout Tyreek Hill, his past, Kareem Hunt, Mathieu at LSU, Mixon Subway video before draft. Talent…and second chances.
January 31st, 2022 at 11:12 am
@ sasquatch
According to PFT:
Brady signed a new contract last year. He earned upon signing it a $20 million signing bonus. Of that amount, $15 million was deferred until this February 4, 2022. He has earned that money.
That said, the Buccaneers will have the right to recoup signing bonus money from Brady, if he retires with unearned signing bonus money on the books. Technically, since the deal includes three dummy years, he has not yet earned $16 million.
February 4 affects neither the reality that Brady has earned the full $20 million nor the fact that the Bucs have the right to recover up to $16 million of it.
…
Will they ask for all of it? Some of it? The most fair outcome would be to reclaim $10 million of it since it was basically a two-year deal, and he played one year of it. So pay him $5 million on February 4 and call it a day.
January 31st, 2022 at 11:20 am
Gunnin, that’s what Bill Cosby said.
January 31st, 2022 at 11:26 am
Tom Brady retirement theory being discussed…
– Tom Brady retirement leak theory:
– Tom Brady recorded his teased final episode of “Man In The Arena” where he announces his retirement.
– Someone at ESPN+, the network that carries the series, sees an advance copy.
– That person leaks it to fellow employee Adam Schefter.
January 31st, 2022 at 11:27 am
Another intelligent one at 11:20.
Afar…from intelligent. Exhausting.
January 31st, 2022 at 11:40 am
(cowards..)
January 31st, 2022 at 11:51 am
I’d want more information on his recovery before committing $18m/year to a player.
January 31st, 2022 at 12:11 pm
godwin is not down with a franchise tag again…
he got screwed with the injury and now he’s got to get a deal…
pull that on him and he jettisons quick fast and in a hurry
January 31st, 2022 at 12:15 pm
if you do franchise him, essentially you are saying:
f you chris godwin, prove to me you can still play on that knee…
so it’s actually just a very high paying “prove it deal” for one year…
he will take a deal elsewhere if the bucs pull that with him…
you’ll have yourself a pissed off ex-buccaneer
January 31st, 2022 at 12:25 pm
yep i’m all about getting andrew luck in here…
let’s pluck andrew luck back from the dead…
that’s a freakin’ move…
but the colts are pretty dialed up right now, so wouldn’t he just go back there for a superbowl run on familiar grounds
January 31st, 2022 at 12:26 pm
Make The Bucs Great Again…Save The Licht House.
January 31st, 2022 at 12:27 pm
@ adam
I don’t believe they will use the franchise tag on Godwin. If the Bucs use the franchise tag it will be for J. Whitehead or C. Davis.
It will only cost @ $10 mil to FT Whitehead.
It will cost @ $16.5 mil to FT C. Davis…
Given our current lack of salary cap dollars I believe they will use the FT on J. Whitehead instead of C. Davis.
Our first round pick will be the replacement for either Godwin or C. Davis because we really can’t afford both…
January 31st, 2022 at 12:33 pm
Let all free agents walk. The Bucs will need all the compensatory picks they can get for the rebuild.
January 31st, 2022 at 12:38 pm
@ adam
I believe the Colts still hold the NFL rights to Luck. We will still need to send draft picks to Indy for his services.
Are you willing to part with a first and maybe a second round pick to take the chance on Luck?
January 31st, 2022 at 12:43 pm
love FA and the draft thank God we don’t need a Qb we have Trask.
January 31st, 2022 at 12:50 pm
For all those who say it’s a rebuilding year… Are you out of your mind? They sign back Jensen and they still have one of the top 3 offensive lines in the NFL. And none of them are over 30.
They still have Shaq, Vea, LVD, White, Nacho, Nelson, SMB, Dean, Winfield, Edwards.
They have all the receivers except Godwin.
They basically need to sign Jensen, Whitehead, Godwin, Fournette, Gholston.
A couple moves in free agency, a few draft picks and they still have one of the best rosters in the NFL.
So the roster is not in a “rebuilding year”.
Like every team every year, they have some spots to reload at
The only real big question is quarterback.
January 31st, 2022 at 12:52 pm
Gunnin, ya all 20+ women are lying. The USA female gymnastic team had the same attorney, were they all lying? Don’t let the awe of great athlete skew your myopic mind.
January 31st, 2022 at 1:15 pm
@ David
I agree with part of your comment. IMO it at hinges on what TB12 decides to do. If TB12 retires the plan changes a bit.
Regardless, we do still have a decent roster and solid starters at certain positions. If I were GM I would first get both C. Davis and Whitehead signed. That would lock in our defensive backfield for 2022.
Then I would re-sign Stinnie and J. Wells on the cheap. Jenson is 30 going on 31 but I would still try to bring him back if he was willing to give us a hometown discount. Let Cappa walk and have Hainsey, Stinnie and Leverett compete for the guard spot.
January 31st, 2022 at 2:15 pm
Joe thinks there is a real albeit slim chance Brady is to peeved about the link he returns for 2022.
January 31st, 2022 at 4:00 pm
Gunnin, if you don’t see a flaw in Watsons character, one may believe you’re the moron. The man is leaving the franchise hostage after receiving at that time one of if not the highest QB contract in the league because.he wants to be traided. Go join the NBA. During all that t
he’s been accused of sexual harassment and who knows what by 20+ women, ya see a pattern here?
I’ll bet you were one of the first to call AB a.dirt bag. And you think I have issues?
January 31st, 2022 at 4:18 pm
Fix the holes on defense rather than overloading at the WR position.
January 31st, 2022 at 7:12 pm
If Brady isn’t feeling it with the Bucs for 2022, he may manipulate/arrange a trade with 49ers for Jimmy G. Or he’ll retire.
If Brady wants to play, he’ll play 1 more year, if he believes he has a chance to play with SB contender.
If Brady is QB for 49ers yesterday, they win that game.
Brady will stay in Tampa if he thinks the players to contend will be here.