Did Chris Godwin Want To Stay With Bucs?
March 11th, 2022
Chris Godwin
Joe wonders how much the mystery of the Bucs’ 2022 starting quarterback factored in Chris Godwin playing enough hardball that Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht had to slap the franchise tag on Godwin for the second straight year.
Joe had already written that Godwin played this perfectly — from Godwin’s point of view. He will get paid 120 percent of his salary (some $19 million) this year. Not bad coming off major knee surgery. And if Godwin returns 100 percent, he will make an even bigger payday after the 2022 season.
Savvy move.
Joe likens the Bucs’ situation with their offensive free agents to a chicken-or-the-egg theory. Licht believes the Bucs can lure a top-shelf quarterback because of the superior weapons, much like they got Tom Brady. But how do you keep those weapons if they don’t know who the quarterback is?
Joe spoke about this last week in Indianapolis at the combine with NFL Network’s Peter Schrager.
“It is a chicken-or-the-egg,” Schrager said. “And a lot of that is, are [the Bucs] confident enough if Brady doesn’t come back, or if they don’t get a big-name [quarterback], are these guys willing to come back with Kyle Trask?
“And we will know. If, hey, Godwin and Fournette and all these guys come back and there are still quarterback questions, that is a big testament to Kyle Trask and what they think they saw in a year. But that’s all fair. You talk. about free agent destinations. Some teams, ‘I want to play with this quarterback’ or ‘I want to chase this ring.’ The Bucs are still a giant unknown.”
Yes, Trask is a huge mystery and from what Joe has heard, he might be a mystery to even Bucs coaches.
The way Joe hears it, Trask is sort of like a 15-year-old whose father has let him drive the car around the block a few times to prep him for driver’s ed class. He’s done really well driving in the immediate neighborhood but he’s yet to drive on a four-lane road much less on the interstate or even parallel park.
Could Trask, being limited to the scout team in practice, have learned enough from Brady and showed enough in practice that Godwin (and perhaps others) want to stay? Or did Licht have to use the franchise tag hammer to reel Godwin back to the roster?
March 11th, 2022 at 11:36 am
No he would of left. With BA as the HC he has no future. Or it will be hindered.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:38 am
I wonder what Godwin could fetch in a trade…
March 11th, 2022 at 11:40 am
Goodwin played the Bucs well. Top end receiver pay for a half year. He can close the year out without a decline, and he will sign next year somewhere else. He would have already signed a long term contract by now if he really wanted to stay in Tampa.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:48 am
I’ve wondered the same thing. I love the competitiveness of trask, but from what I remember he didn’t have much zip on the ball. In college, I always thought pitts made him look better than he was.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:49 am
Lol! Nope! No o-line, lousy secondary, zero pass rush and a garbage QB. Why wouldn’t he want to be here? Lol! Back to 10 straight losing seasons. Saints win the division. The Bucs are 5-6 win team. Simple as that.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:57 am
Bucs got him at a bargain for 20m/yr. Mike Williams just signed for the same amount and is not on the same level as Godwin. He will made 24m/yr on the open market tbh
March 11th, 2022 at 12:01 pm
Sign JW for cheap, he already had the Arians 1st season struggles like every Arians QB (Brady took half a year but he’s the Goat), JW played really well with no receivers last year (MT was hurt), he’s got chemistry with our stud WRs, he’s really mobile when the line struggles, plus imagine all the press, and he’d make us the favorite in our division, with Russell out of the NFC, RodgersStaffordDak are the only elite QBs, JW slightly improved is probably top 5 NFC, he fails you have Gabbert and Trask anyways
March 11th, 2022 at 12:04 pm
If Brady went somewhere else 2020, JW would’ve been our best option
March 11th, 2022 at 12:06 pm
JW has out performed Teddy, Mariota, and Trubisky, if he learned to control his boneheaded plays 2 years with the Saints, he’s worth taking a flyer on
March 11th, 2022 at 12:07 pm
Godwin just signed his second franchise tag due to his obvious production and value and will make over 35 million for 2 years of work. Boy, BA has really hindered his career. Haha… Some of these posters couldn’t spell cat if you spotted them the c and the t.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:08 pm
I mean, yeah, Brady being gone means everyone wants fair market value.
The tag was the only easy way to make sure he doesn’t leave.
Patriots didn’t make the playoffs the first year after Brady left, that’s your best evidence of what we will be. It’s a huge blow, and underestimating the blow it will be is probably exactly why Brady retired.
He was taken for granted in New England and Tampa Bay and it’s unbelievable. The way he elevated the psychology of the entire organization was unreal.
Even Bucs hype videos were very good, they were truly horrible 3 years ago.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:10 pm
Guzzie, just posted this on the other thread:
I don’t want Winston back here, but even if I did the Saints have already cleared cap space with the thought of bringing him back. Cam Jordan, notorious Donovan Smith lover, just redid his contract as part of that effort. Winston will be headed back there and will get to see him twice a year again.
BA is already disinclined to want him as his quarterback but even if he was, he will resign with the Saints.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:11 pm
Jeff … It cuts both ways.
There are holes all over the team. OL, DB, DL, RB … and QB. The ONE AND ONLY position the Bucs have depth is WR.
Why would Licht use all the Bucs cap on any WR, let alone one that won’t be a Game 1 starter?
REASON: Blinded by pride. Licht did the one thing he said GM’s can never do. Lock in on you guy. He’s too proud of this pick to see the big picture.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:14 pm
Godwin is worth a 1st in a trade.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:17 pm
Marine Buc if he wasn’t coming off acl surgery you could get a second round pick for him. I would be surprised if anyone would trade for him with that in mind. I know the Jags 33rd pick would look good!
March 11th, 2022 at 12:26 pm
@ Jordan Thanks for pointing to this fact
“Brady being gone means everyone wants fair market value.”
That is exactly the greatest value Tom had to NE for 20y and Tampa, his impact on the cap, he took 25-50% under market paid contracts, and still won, so players would be willing to take 25% pay cuts an stay, as you cant get “Greedy” when Tom wasn’t and he kept winning.
If Tom went max money first every other player on the team is within their right to go money max first or leave.
Normal teams cannot ask top 10 players to take pay cuts if other team will pay more guaranteed money market value. It would be crazy for Davis, Fournette and Godwin to do this. As this likely their only deal in their lives where they will make 95% of their life time earnings in 2-3 years on one contract.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:38 pm
None of the above Joe. Godwin wasn’t going to sign a long-term deal no matter what the Bucs offered. He’s waiting for the big salary cap increase in 2023 from the new TV contract. Then he’ll screw the Bucs again. Get him to sign his tender and then trade him.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:51 pm
@ Tampaallday/Allbucdup/Bucs Guy
I would be fine trading Godwin for a first round pick… Especially if that pick is in the top 20. Lots of solid WRs coming out of college this year.
If Godwin wants to move on trade his arse to the Jets or Jags…
He probably won’t play until week 6 anyways.
I wouldn’t shed a single tear.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:55 pm
Godwin is staying. No trade.
If d. Watson is going to get another shot at starting and coming back , colin k should too.
Licht call colin. K and sign him.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:57 pm
next week we’ll get a better understanding what will happen – who stays, who goes and what quarterback wants to be a Buccaneer
March 11th, 2022 at 1:12 pm
@ Adrny
Colin K. doesn’t fit BA’s offense… We are looking for an accurate pocket passer.
I could see him going to Arizona or Baltimore – he would be an excellent fit in those offenses.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:13 pm
Colin Kap was already benched once for Gabbert would you embarrass him again? Gabbert was a #1 round pick who the 49ers thought was good enough to replace Kap. He’s had 2 years behind Brady, can throw the deep ball the way BA and BL like. He has thrown to these receivers in practice after Brady taught them how to run routes. Watson ain’t cuming to Tampa
March 11th, 2022 at 1:16 pm
Trask is a huge mystery and from what Joe has heard, he might be a mystery to even Bucs coaches.
– The 2nd guessing is too late- the Bucs picked Trask in 2nd round- time to see if he can play. I don’t expect great but I expect better than Gabbert.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:17 pm
Lol I tell you every year a new narrative is created and people bite. Every year a free agent receiver signs with a trash team with a question at quarterback unless we are saying every team has a franchise guy except the Bucs. Free agents tight ends and receivers signed to go play with for example the Giants, patriots and jets all with huge question marks at quarterback.
It’s really a stupid narrative if your good your good, evans proved that playing with mccown, Winston and Fitzpatrick. His stats were no different than when they were with Brady. It’s also stupid to ask because of the franchise if it is also true they are working on a long term deal.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:20 pm
I get what Chris is doing and I understand that getting his money is more important to him than what happens with our other free agents. Hell, I’d probably be doing the same damn thing. From my perspective as a fan though, Chris has f’d us with his greed and ruined our chance to use the tag on someone else.
Joe talks about general managers getting attached to their picks and I feel like that is exactly what is happening here. Either Licht is blinded by his fondness for Chris, he’s dumb as a box of rocks (doubtful since he’s aced the last couple of years), or he tagged Chris in hopes of trading him. I’m wishing for the latter if someone is dumb enough to give us a first round pick for a currently broken player that gets hurt and misses significant time nearly every single year. Let another idiot team do like what the Chargers did with Williams and pay him 20 or more per year. Overpaying for flawed players was what most of the old Buc regimes did in the past and I’d like to think that we are past that nonsense.
Oh, Ira, dude I love your work and you are my easily my favorite sports writer, but calling Chris elite was both weird and silly. If he could stay healthy would he be elite? It’s a stretch, but I could make an argument for it. Regardless, I’d be jumping out of my skin yelling for Licht to give Chris pretty much what he wanted if he hadn’t proven to be brittle.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:21 pm
I don’t think it has anything to do with Brady. Godwin held out last season, so I don’t think Brady is a factor.
Simple explanation: He’s looking for the fattest contract possible. It’s his first big money, multi-year deal. And this isn’t the NBA, it might be the only big, multi-year deal in his career.
Joe Namath summed it up. He once said something like, “Make all you can while you can.” His career trajectory supports that quote.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:26 pm
I would not have franchised Godwin. That is an awful lot of money to pay an injured player, who will not be back until later on next year.
But it is what it is, and right now we have 2 world class receivers, with no one to throw to them, and few to block, if we lose Jensen.
I think it would have been better to let Chris taste free agency, and then sign him.
Right now, he is damaged goods, but next year he will really cash in.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:28 pm
I will be both surprised and disappointed if he plays on the tag. My thought this whole time is they tag him while they work out a longer deal that saves cap space. If that doesn’t happen this would seem to be an uncharacteristic misstep by the contract and cap guys which of course includes the GM.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:37 pm
Godwin at most will rack 400-600yds 5 td this year. Evans 800yds-1000 9td
March 11th, 2022 at 1:41 pm
Wow, Joe can’t resist articles claiming that if players leave it’s because of Trask. You’re a disingenuous clown, Joe. Players leave NFL teams all the time for sundry reasons such as … wait for it … Tom Brady left! … And they didn’t even win last season WITH Tom Brady! … Concussions! … More money! … Another team has a better shot at a ring! … Arians has only one year left on his contract! … They think Tampa has crappy fans (Joe)! … But nooooo, if a player leaves it must be because of Trask! Joe, just butch up and admit you hate Trask.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:44 pm
Do you think Jamiss wants to come back here after the Saints claim White hurt him intentionally? The reason Brady was yelling at the Saints coaches was because he thought the Saints were going after his receivers in retaliation. They got Godwin. Jamiss was also rooting against us in the playoffs.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:44 pm
trade trask, godwin and 2 first round pics to houston for watson..
March 11th, 2022 at 2:05 pm
Godwin is a once in a lifetime player, you keep him no matter what
March 11th, 2022 at 2:09 pm
@ kyle
That is not an unrealistic suggestion…
Denver just paid 2 first rounders, 2 second round Drew Lock, Noah Fant and Shelby Harris (DL) for Russ Wilson – who isn’t in any legal trouble and is not facing NFL suspension.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:11 pm
Several folks seem to be hung up on bringing in Colin Kaepernick for some reason. In 6 years with San Fran, he threw for a 59.8% completion percentage and 72 TDs. Not hard to do the math there (not very impressive). He’s not close to being in the same league as Trubisky (64%) or Bridgewater (66.5%) or Mariota (62.8%). Not to mention that he hasn’t played professional football in, oh ya, forever.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:13 pm
@ Beeej
What if Godwin doesn’t want to be here?
Why haven’t the Bucs and Godwin been able to work out a long term contract in over two years?
My hope is by June the Bucs will announce they have signed Godwin to a long term deal… But if that doesn’t happen it seems obvious CG doesn’t want to be in Tampa.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:23 pm
Adrnagy……….Are you trying to assume the “Village Idiot Throne”?
Cause you are doing well if you are.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:30 pm
Can’t dispute your point Marine Buc. To be sure, the guy wants maximum $. I can see refusing to sign a deal THIS year, as a torn ACL doesn’t look good on the open market. Can the Bucs pay him $18-20 million NEXT year? dunno
March 11th, 2022 at 2:39 pm
I guess I must be missing something here because I don’t see any great mystery. They are rolling into 2022 with lesser talent at QB and NEED to surround them with superior WR talent. ALL QBs not named Brady are “lesser talent”!
Not to mention, it’s just dumb to let good football players walk out the door.
You guys are just throwing all kinds of stuff against the wall hoping it sticks.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:47 pm
Joe gets angry at us because we point out he is so critical of a QB that has never played. No kidding he isn’t as good as brady. No kidding we are going to struggle because we can’t afford to pay everyone. No kidding we aren’t going to be as competitve.
WATSON ISN”T COMING. You need to get that out of your head. Aside from going with a retread in Jameis, which wouldn’t be worth the money. Trask is our best option.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:54 pm
Godwin will have made nearly $35-$36 million for this past year and this upcoming season….all guaranteed. Now he has both franchise tags out of the way, next season he hits the open market and we risk getting nothing. Smart gamble by Godwin….terrible roster management by Licht. He’s lost all leverage on this deal and with our other FAs.
I’m convinced Licht has no choice but to go all in for Watson to salvage this situation. He doesn’t land Watson or find a diamond in the rough in the available QB market, Licht is left relying on Trask to make or break his career. If he whiffs again on finding a young QB to develop and the team goes back to being mediocre, that’s the end of the road for Licht & Co.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:57 pm
I feel you Bobby, It may have been better to keep Whitehead and Cappa for how much we now owe Godwin.
March 11th, 2022 at 3:15 pm
tampabuscsbro … that’s exactly it. Keep Whitehead, Cappa, and Stinnie for the same number as Godwin.
March 11th, 2022 at 3:21 pm
stomach turning hit against the Saints
so painful
hopefully he can prevail and keeping being a top receiver in the league
the Bucs were really close this year — such a bummer for Godwin not to be available in the end
March 11th, 2022 at 3:26 pm
“Could Trask, being limited to the scout team in practice, have learned enough from Brady and showed enough in practice that Godwin (and perhaps others) want to stay?” Only one way to find out. Put Trask under center and let’s see what he’s got. Give him a whole year. If he sucks, we get a great draft pick next year and can grab our future face of the franchise. If he’s mediocre and we go 8-9, well that’s about what we would expect if Gabbert was our QB. But just maybe in his first year, Trask gets us to 10-7 or 11-6 and into the playoffs. That is something we can build on!
March 11th, 2022 at 3:31 pm
“PSL Bob Says: But just maybe in his first year, Trask gets us to 10-7 or 11-6 and into the playoffs. That is something we can build on!”
No, no, no. We can’t have that. Trask wasn’t a first rounder like Brett Favre and Tom Brady. Oh … wait … /s
March 11th, 2022 at 4:29 pm
36million divided by 2 equals 18mil/yr which is well below Godwin’s market value. What are you mouth breathers going on about paying Godwin too much for. He is obviously worth more than that LOL
March 11th, 2022 at 4:30 pm
Long as he stays, I don’t care. He’s not the kind of guy to throw a tantrum.
A trade is the only way we’ll get a top starting QB. Either up in the draft or a trade for one off a team.
If we trade most of this year’s picks to get the right guy, it might be worth it. Say a 1st, 3rd, 4th etc to get a guy who is great and will play a few years. It wouldn’t kill us if no future picks are lost, and it would be worth it.
March 11th, 2022 at 4:41 pm
He likely got tagged to take all of the unknowns out of the equation for Team Glazer. They can work something out during the season, and he will have time to rehab and negotiate. CG is clearly the guy they wanted back not named Brady. Maybe its to draw QB interest, but most likely that this duo produces regardless of who is under center. They reflect the only certain identity of this team and have earned every penny they are paid.
March 11th, 2022 at 4:48 pm
What if Godwin doesn’t want to resign with the bucs because he doesn’t want to block and take on dlineman and linebackers. Perhaps he wants to line up outside and not really have to block the big boys
March 11th, 2022 at 7:56 pm
@Bobby. 100% disagree. You do not risk losing Godwin. You bet on that man as he has always risen above. I believe Mike Evans much more than I believe the couch GM’s on this board that CG wanted to stay here. I hate to lose Cappa and Whitehead but CG is just too important. You hope both can be accomplished but I’ll take CG over both of those guys all day every single day if need be.
March 11th, 2022 at 8:41 pm
The players know, if they thought Trask had a chance at being a QB that could at least get them in the playoffs this year we would hear the players say so. No one except the coaches have talked positively about Trask. So, this is like rats off a sinking ship.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:00 pm
I guess that doesn’t matter this year. Franchise tag. I’m of the camp he wants number one reciever money and a long term contract on a team with a good QB.under a longterm contract. And a good chance at making the playoffs.
In Tampa he is behind Evans so I doubt they will throw more money at Godwin than Evans has coming to him. Tampa doesn’t exactly have a long-term answer at Qb at the moment. Not to mention a head coach who may retire after next season. Or will possibly be retired by ownership in the event of a terrible season.
So there are greener pastures out there for Godwin. With more money, a longterm deal, a stable Qb situation and better chance at the playoffs.
Having said all that. I for one like Godwin and want him to stay in Tampa. I feel his best play is yet to come. But I can’t help but think he benefitted from defenses targeting guys like Evans, AB, Fournette and Gronk. Let’s be honest Evans was getting mugged by double teams in the regular season. Then Evans was getting mugged by legit No.1 corners in the playoffs. That made things a bit easier for him to rack up impressive stats.
He will be a hot free agent and likely will remember being franchised twice. When he finally gets to be a free agent. He will be excited to see what’s out there and will likely take a deal with another team. Cleveland for example.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:04 pm
@DR: the quickest way to vaporize the TB fan base is to song Kaepernick.
The second quickest way is to bring back Leeman Bennett or Richard Williamson (RIP).
March 11th, 2022 at 11:04 pm
sign