Sitting Chris Godwin Wouldn’t Have Equaled Quitting
October 22nd, 2024
There’s a divide among Bucs fans and a divide at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters.
Joe polled fans early today and took the temperature of the beer-can-littered conference room at blog HQ.
The Joe typing here thinks Todd Bowles or playcaller Liam Coen soiled himself last night by endorsing putting Chris Godwin’s body on the line over the middle with 1:04 on the clock and the Bucs needing a truly historic football miracle to overcome a 10-point deficit — from their 18 yard line with no timeouts.
If the Bucs were to be successful after Godwin’s first down that cost him a nasty broken ankle, the Bucs would have had to march 65 yards for a touchdown within, say, the next two plays. And then they’d have to successfully execute an onside kick. That scenario would have given Tampa Bay the ball at around their 45 yard line with maybe 35 seconds left to set up a game-tying field goal.
That’s absolutely a crazy-difficult task (maybe a 1.5 percent chance) but certainly possible.
For the Joe typing here, however, the nuance lies not in whether it was worth a shot but in what players you put out there to go for it.
Was Godwin really the player to target and expose over the middle to at least one free-hitter on a known passing down?
Coaches are paid millions to manage risk. There’s no way anyone can convince Joe that was a sound risk. And this is not a new stance for Joe. There have been safety-first takes here for years in similar scenarios.
As Joe wrote previously, the Bucs lost Antoine Winfield, Jr. for four games this season because he busted up his foot in Week 1 on the Commanders’ final and meaningless drive. The Bucs won that game by 17 points.
Was there no lesson to be learned there?
The Bucs could have played fought hard late in that game with a backup safety — just like they could have let loose rookie tight end Devin Culp, a fast and huge target, late last night while they sought a miracle. Or they could have sent one of their non-Godwin receivers into the fire.
It is not Joe’s job to assess and manage risk in a football game. That belongs to the coaching staff.
Somebody thought it was a smart idea to put Godwin on miracle duty after Mike Evans suffered a major injury. Joe has no doubt that the Bucs’ analytics team could/would have determined that Godwin’s risk of injury was greater than the Bucs’ chance to win the game.
Is it too much to expect for whomever made the call to stand up and say it was a calculated risk that didn’t add up?
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:38 pm
Stop it. We lost. Lets move on. Goodwin and Evans were playing to increase our chances of winning..Period. At 2mins we still had a shot. I like the fact Baker is backing up Bowles. That reporter in the after-game press conference tried to..Bait Bowles. But Todd kept his cool and responded correctly. Its over. The Falcons are comin to town and they will be ready. We had better be as well. Next man up. Thats all that matters..Figuring out a way to beat the Falcons..Period.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:38 pm
Down your #1 WR, why would your #2 at risk in a game that is decided? It’s coaching malpractice at best and a firing offense at worst.
Bowles has no control over this team
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:40 pm
Going to be real hard to win games now. Especially when your defense is getting destroyed. Things can start to look bad for Todd Bowles.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:41 pm
Todd keeps saying it’s communication issues. He did it again today. How can every game that ends poorly for the defense be on communication? FIX IT.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:43 pm
The Ravens had all their D starters out there ..Ro Smith could of been hurt on the Godwin tackle ..Why would Harbaugh leave his D out there if the game is over ?
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:45 pm
My view is that crazy endings happen every single week in the NFL, even down multiple scores with very little time left. Down 10 with 1:34 to go is a long shot but those kind of comebacks happen every year.
It was very unlikely that they would tie or win the game but I think you do need to try and you need your best players to do that. Finally, it makes no difference whether Godwin got hurt in the last minute of the Baltimore game or in the first minute of the Atlanta game.
Bowles deserves blame for how badly the defense played, not for Godwin getting hurt.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:49 pm
Believe it or not, most NFL teams leave their starters in even when the game is out if reach.
But the Bucs still had a chance to win that game and “you play to win the game”
Hindsight is 20/20 so its easy and unfair to point the finger at Bowels
I guarantee that if Bowels took the starters out the headlines on here today would be bashing Todd Bowels for quitting.
Its just so dumb to try to blame coaches for freak injuries especially in football. Every single snap a player takes in the NFL is a risk even when starters play in preseason……
Hopefully we can all be mature about this and not blame Bowels for something that largely out of his control when trying to win a football game…..lets move on and not beat a deadhorse.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:51 pm
I think Joe nails it. Bowles is paid millions to manage risk. The problem is we got our a$$ kicked and I am not sure the game was winable. We were already down Evans who by the way likely should of not played and since he was we def shouldn’t of called his number on deep shots while he’s injured that was just stupid in itself.
We are in week 7 of a 17 week season and now we are down our best two wide receivers. Hes a question no one asked… Is Bowles on the hot seat even before this game? Starting an injured Evans and keeping Godwin on the field almost seem like acts of desperation. Although a big game the Ravens game wasn’t a “must win” the true “must win” is this week verse ATL.
Anyways I am always optimistic about my bucs but being down your 1 and 2 WR is not good.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:51 pm
Agree Ken, blame Bowels for the cruddy defense….he’s on the hot seat for that for sure.
But dont blame the man for a devastating injury….thats just unfair.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:52 pm
Davenport Says:
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:38 pm
Down your #1 WR, why would your #2 at risk in a game that is decided? It’s coaching malpractice at best and a firing offense at worst.
Bowles has no control over this team
THAT IS JUST LAZY! STOP IT.
October 22nd, 2024 at 4:53 pm
We’re focused on the offense, injuries are part of the game. Sad but true, look around the other teams and who they’ve lost already seven weeks into a season.
The real problem is with the defense. Giving up all those yards two weeks in a row is on the coaching staff, who didn’t prepare the players to play two weeks in a row.
The so-called head coach defensive mastermind is not doing his job.
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:01 pm
If there’s a 1% chance of winning the football game. Then no one sits, we play until the end. Injuries are a part of the game, a part of life.
You play to win the game
You don’t play not to get injured
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:08 pm
McMillian and Palmer may not be as notable as Godwin and Evans—most receiver tandems aren’t—but they would start on many teams this year, and I would bet on it. You play to win the game. Want to play the retroactive game? I refer to the decision to punt on 4th and 12; maintaining the punt changed the game, even after a 5-yard penalty. Going for it on 4th and 7 would have been an educated risk that could have altered the outcome. At that point, they were only down by two scores, followed by that great punt inside the 10 that Derek Henry took for a touchdown just a few plays later. If the team hadn’t secured the first down there, they could have attempted another long field goal with the penalty in mind. However, it was still the third quarter, and they were only down by 10 at the time, so you punt.
Injuries are part of the game. What if Baker or Wirfs had been hurt? No one could have predicted Godwin’s injury, and the risk may not have been worth the reward. However, had they managed a miraculous comeback with Godwin scoring and staying healthy, everyone would have praised the decision to keep the starters in and keep fighting.
Personally, I believe that losing does not define a person. Even in defeat, a person’s mindset matters. Quitting at any point reflects a loser’s mindset, while true resilience means continuing to compete. This was the first time I felt like Bowles wanted to snatch victory from defeat instead of just rolling over. Ultimately, it didn’t work, and it was a poor decision. They lost one of the best Bucs wide receivers of all time and still lost the game.
But—and it’s a HUGE BUT—he and the team showed, just like last year, that they believe in one another. They are willing to scrap and fight until the last minute, and that’s why certain guys have gotten paid, while some have left, come back, or found themselves out of the NFL entirely.
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:09 pm
So if he would have got injured in the second quarter it would have been ok? Crazy line of thought injuries are unpredictable and unfortunate but that’s the game of football. Hope you get well soon Chris. Go bucs.
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:27 pm
I saw a pic of Godwin on the field. It reminded me of the great Paris Warren in the last three minutes of the last 2007 PS game.
Anybody else remember that one?
I’m not saying Warren = Godwin. But Warren, who was coming on and had a monster TC & PS that year, was never the same.
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:41 pm
Just last year Bowles got blasted for not using timeouts,and essentially giving up on the game before it ended, no matter how infinitesimal the chance. He listened and played ton win, and now is blasted this way as well….tough gig…I personally was yelling to pull Baker and starters after Otten was getting rag dolled on every play
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:49 pm
Where were the quitters when Godwin was in the game last week Bucs up 24?
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:54 pm
Godwin could have dislocated his ankle in practice. It happens.
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:56 pm
Mayfield threw an interception instead of throwing ball away on Ravens’ 3 yard line – cost at least 3 points
Questionable holding call cost 4 points
Evans injury cost another td
1st missed FG of year
Run defense vs Henry was terrible
Bucs still fought to the end and although the injuries are devastating – not just Godwin and Evans, but Smith, Dennis and Dean on Defensive side-this team continued to fight – fans should recognize that and stop pointing fingers at Bowles – the subs on defense just didn’t come through but Bowles already said it was communication issues with young defenders.
When we see the team quit- then you can blame Bowles
October 22nd, 2024 at 5:59 pm
Taking him out may not be quitting, but if the man wants to play and he’s not already injured, you let him play.
October 22nd, 2024 at 6:58 pm
If Bowles took a knee or didn’t try to win the game you naysayers would have crucified him, including this “Joe”, And rightfully so. I will never criticize Bowles for doing anything he cousin that moment to try and win the game. It wasn’t over.
October 22nd, 2024 at 7:10 pm
I dunno about this one. We have been in the wrong end of miracle comebacks and would have been nice to somehow be on the right side of one. Not likely, but we either sit baker and the entire offense or no one. What happened to Godwin could have just as easily happened on the first snap against Atl next week. Yeah it’s a few extra snaps he was exposed (or maybe more I guess I’d you think he should have been pulled at start of fourth?)
October 22nd, 2024 at 7:46 pm
#14 should have never been sent over the middle at that point against one of the dirtyest linebackers in league. That hit was with intention to hurt Chris, and the HC is in charge. Period.
October 22nd, 2024 at 8:01 pm
Sitting is quitting. By the very definition of the action, sitting is quitting. Let Tyree Hill yuck it up on the sideline while his team is being blown out. Go ahead, let it happen. Watch what happens to the team going forward.
Let Godwin be a warrior. Just like ME was playing through the pain to help the team. Some will say Mike was playing to help his stats. Yep. Welcome to a great player who wants to be viewed as great. The two actions aren’t mutually exclusive.
They both got hurt. Damn the luck but I’m proud of being a fan of warriors. Losers lose and lose again. Winners lose, get back up and win. ME13 & Godwin are both winners.
…. Now see me next season if Godwin isn’t given a fair contract. Then I’ll be mad at the Bucs.
For now: Next men up. Slaughter the Falcons next week on a short work week down two stars. Maybe that will shut up all this negative crap that’s floating around.
October 22nd, 2024 at 8:24 pm
Only 5 active WRs on game day and Mike already out. Unfortunately, all hands on deck. Heal up quick #14 and #13!
October 22nd, 2024 at 8:31 pm
Anyone for FA Russell Gage?
October 22nd, 2024 at 9:01 pm
To me it comes down to a timeout in the playoffs against Detroit. Someone above wrote that Harbaugh left his D starters in and they could have been hurt. Harbaugh plays his starters in the preseason and always plays his guys. He has a track record of doing it. We have a coach who quit in the playoffs when he had a timeout to force Detroit to kick the ball back and gave up there. This was by far wayyyyy more over than that game and decided to give up. Plus it’s an AFC North team and you have a must win game for first place next Sunday….. this was a full on crap your pants call by the coach and OC.
October 22nd, 2024 at 9:08 pm
Roquan Smith made an illegal “hip drop” tackle on Chris Godwin that was not called and ended Chris season. Not sure why this has’t been discussed?
October 22nd, 2024 at 10:18 pm
I just read the last article of yours that I will ever read.
October 22nd, 2024 at 10:55 pm
You play to win and injuries are not the coach’s fault, it’s part of the game. The team thought they had a chance and it’s professional football you don’t pull players out
October 23rd, 2024 at 3:21 am
Leaving Godwin in vs. the Falcons, or against a tough conference foe, makes perfect sense… there is high reward for the risk. But against a non-conference opponent, in a blowout; it was simply not a critical game to try to pull off a miracle.
To put it in other terms, losing the game but keeping Evans and Godwin healthy would have been a W in the long term. Getting a miracle comeback win over the ravens, but losing both receivers in the process, would prove to be a long-term L. Evans should have been rested, to ensure his health for the Falcons next week. Godwin, and probably Mayfield, should have been pulled after 3 qtr.
Live to fight another day.
October 23rd, 2024 at 12:23 pm
Every play in a football game is risky. That said, strategically I would have sat Evans and Vea for the Falcons game and pulled Godwin and Baker with no timeouts.
October 23rd, 2024 at 6:31 pm
I disagree with Joe on this. What are we supposed to do. Give up in the 4th quarter and bench all our regulars. It was exciting to see the bucs fight. And yes we did have a chance. This is what we needed to beat Atlanta. Yes we lost. The Ravens were better. Yes Chris got hurt. But that can happen in any play. The one thing you could probably second guess is maybe we should have not played Evans. We all knew he wasn’t 100%. Instead if resting him and allowing him to get fully healed. He played and we wanted him too. Looking back. Maybe if we rested him 1 more game. He could have been ok the rest if the season.
October 23rd, 2024 at 7:40 pm
Since one Joe thinks the game was over, exactly which important “starters” should have sat at the end?