Defenses Not Godwin’s Only Battle
June 8th, 2018
Allergies hit like a linebacker.
Talk to suits or coaches who have worked for Florida teams, they will tell you for guys new to the heat and humidity of the south and southeast, the struggle to get used to it is real.
Joe even was told by an NFL suit that is a big factor in drafting guys from the west coast.
While it may get hot in southern California, it is far different than the suffocating heat and humidity of Florida. Some West Coast guys, Joe was told, never adjust and it shows in their play.
Now Bucs receiver Chris Godwin is not from the West Coast, he is from the Philadelphia area. In other words, where Godwin grew up, there is but three months of summer and it doesn’t always get Florida hot or Florida humid. So Godwin had to adjust to the intensity of Tampa’s climate.
In one”Hard Knocks” scene last year, Dirk Koetter could be seen counseling Godwin about his struggle with stamina. This lasted into the season, but when Godwin got a handle on that, his play got better and better.
For Godwin, it wasn’t that he was out of shape. He had to get used to the climate, but in more ways that one.
It turned out Godwin was zapped because his allergies went nuts.
While Godwin always had allergies, he found out the hard way he is highly allergic to certain pollen native to Florida that he didn’t have to fight up north.
As a result, Godwin at times had trouble just breathing.
“It’s sinus allergies, pollen,” Godwin told Joe yesterday after underwear football practice. “It makes me stuffy down here.”
This got Joe very curious. How did Godwin know what to take for his allergies when they flared so badly? Was he scared he might take an over-the-counter drug and a couple of weeks later, get a nasty FedEx letter from NFL strongman Roger Goodell explaining he flunked a whiz quiz and would have to sit out some games?
That thought did cross Godwin’s mind, he said.
“It is the same as anything,” Godwin explained. “We have to be responsible for what we put in our bodies. I work with our training staff and our doctors to find out what [allergy medicines] works best for me. This is stuff I have dealt with my entire life. I just had to acclimate to the weather [pollen] down here as opposed to the weather up north.”
So Joe asked Godwin about being at home and then suddenly having an allergic reaction, would he have to call a Bucs trainer or doctor to find out what he could take for relief?
“If I am at home and without a prescription, I just take regular stuff like Benadryl,” said Godwin, noting Benadryl is kosher with the NFL’s PED (performance-enhancing drug) policy.
But, as Godwin said, he usually has a prescription supply on hand that has been cleared by team doctors.
June 8th, 2018 at 7:25 am
I have developed allergies as I’ve gotten older and I can attest to the fact that I struggle to breathe. Especially when pollen is everywhere.
June 8th, 2018 at 7:33 am
Insightful article,Joe, on both the difficulty adjusting to the Florida heat and the
allergies. Also doctors often start out on the lower end of the spectrum of allergy medications until they find one that works.
So it often takes a a longer period of time to find the most effectice one for each
person.
June 8th, 2018 at 7:52 am
I am allergic to different types of grasses. Turns out you can get allergy shots. He should do the same, but takes like three years of spring treatments. I find pills do nothing but the sprays work we afternoon and few days of it. I did have one bad reaction when a lady injected my shot right into s muscle though..
June 8th, 2018 at 8:01 am
Let’s do some maths… GMC is smiling + koetter’s soft practices + Jamie’s fumbles + DB coaches suck = allergic to winning!
SMH. Sapp didn’t have allergies and he didn’t let anyone else have them either. He policed allergies right out of the locker room (I heard Chidi had allergies and that’s why Sapp hated him).
June 8th, 2018 at 8:09 am
Those are very much hit or miss. For some, they work great. Others, they are useless. As a kid, Joe must have taken weekly shots for 10 years. Didn’t do a damn thing and when Joe quit taking allergy shots, the allergies , Joe’s allergies cleared up! Have a cousin though who if she misses a shot, she gets really sick.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:12 am
Never had any…until I moved to Florida thirty some years ago. Now…Oaks and such….not a good deal. Life on Zyrtec.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:38 am
Well, maybe we just found our 11th man! Why not whip up a large concoction of oak (my nemesis), hay fever, dust mite and all allergens imaginable and coat the opponents’ sideline with it; maybe even their locker room too…say MIRSA style!
WWBD- What Would Belicheat Do!
June 8th, 2018 at 8:40 am
Sorry, 12th man.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:53 am
Godwin needs some Tampa local honey for his allergies and to consume it regularly. I used to struggle with allergies but haven’t for years. I was skeptical at first but it works.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:56 am
Try the over the counter nasal sprays, I like them better then taking a pill. Another reason to hold most practices indoors.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:58 am
Tell him to get some Tampa area local honey and take it daily
June 8th, 2018 at 8:58 am
“I just love the way Godwin runs downfield on special teams”
Klueless Koetter
*next year with new head coach john defilippo, the buc offense will run thru Godwin and OJ Howard
Kobe Faker
June 8th, 2018 at 8:59 am
My prescription? Winning games.
June 8th, 2018 at 9:05 am
Hodad
Should they wrap players in bubble wrap before they run hide indoors. Bucs are the softest team in nfl and thier fans are even softer. Have them hide inside spoken like a true whimp.
June 8th, 2018 at 9:07 am
I’ve been in Tampa for about 20 years terrible pollen down here, I can relate to Godwin there you start sneezing the congestion the pressure built up ugh the worse
June 8th, 2018 at 10:19 am
This kid is a winner on every level.
There is a reason certain foods and fruits are popular in the south.
For along time there were no air conditioners and people had to adapt.
You have to hydrate through food as well
June 8th, 2018 at 10:45 am
Destinjohnny
Adapt lol… bringing good jokes today. People dont want to adapt they want to be coddled and play the victim card. If there is not a pill to instantly treat thier fears of reality they simply cant cope. Bucs are a reflection of a soft society with hugs and trophies for all. Nice to see Godwin being a man and fighting through it versus running to an air conditioned safespace with purified air and teddy bears.
June 8th, 2018 at 11:29 am
Reality wake up in a bad mood today? Good lord, dude!
June 8th, 2018 at 11:53 am
I’m Florida native 32 years old. Last two seasons have been my first with allergies.
I found that taking none filtered, raw honey grown here in Tampa……must be local works wonders.
I started using the local honey to sweeten my coffee every morning and worked like a charm. I was skeptical and it’s proved to work. Now we use it for whatever we can think of to substitute sugar.
June 8th, 2018 at 12:33 pm
Local honey is indeed great stuff. I also stopped cutting my lawn years ago and that has made me feel much better.
June 8th, 2018 at 2:19 pm
Local honey…@#~*~ wussies…
Eat Bees!
June 8th, 2018 at 2:34 pm
I’ve heard that a rare Japanese\French mixed breed quail produce eggs that kick the crap out of allergies I don’t know how valid those claims are though?
June 8th, 2018 at 5:31 pm
Ya great point people have no problem getting used to excessive heat and humidity realtity is a …
Wow maybe I’ll sell my air con at my house
June 8th, 2018 at 7:15 pm
Never heard of the honey remedies. Interesting.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:12 pm
Feel bad for the guy. I grew up in FL but now live (Bear, DE) real close to his hometown. Pollen season in FL compared to here is a high school to NFL caliber change.
We should confetti the yellow stuff onto opposing teams.
June 8th, 2018 at 8:41 pm
Technically during summer months it is hotter temperature wise above the Mason Dixon line. Florida has afternoon rain storms that lowers the temperature but does increase the humidity. The thing is Florida has more DAYS with temperatures above 90
June 9th, 2018 at 5:20 am
Where do you get the honey from? I have craptastic allergies too. Saw an ENT and I had some major sinus issues going on. Let’s just say I have been dealing with this problem since at least 20 years and I just found out that I had puss and a polyp in my nasal cavities. Taken care of now with the prescription meds and spray. Took a CT Scan and the passages were good – no need for surgery.