The Buccaneers have a clear path to getting more from Chris Godwin this season, and it starts with keeping him upright.
Tampa Bay is moving forward without Mike Evans, who left for another NFC playoff contender in the San Francisco 49ers, and the offense has plenty of names worth watching. Baker Mayfield is back running the show, and young targets like Jalen McMillan and Emeka Egbuka give the Bucs more options down the field. Rookie third-round wide receiver Ted Hurst is also in the mix.
Still, Godwin is the receiver who demands the most attention. Chris Godwin Jr. has already shown what he can be at his best: a former 100-reception receiver, a trusted target for Tom Brady on a Super Bowl team, and one of the league’s top pass-catchers when he gets rolling.
His talent has never been the issue. Health has.
That’s why Tampa Bay’s biggest job with Godwin in 2026 is simple: keep him on the field. He has extra motivation now that he can step out of Evans’ shadow completely, and the Buccaneers need that version of him. Godwin has put together three straight 1,000-yard seasons, plus another year with more than 1,300 receiving yards in 2019, even though he played just 14 games total that season.
The best way to protect him may be to change how the Bucs use him. In recent seasons, they’ve leaned on him in the kind of slot work that can wear a receiver down. Godwin can handle the old “Big Slot” role, the one Vincent Jackson once filled earlier in the 2010s, but hammering him with crossers and traffic over the middle is a fast way to get him hurt again.
A better approach is to keep Godwin working outside, where cornerbacks are the ones making the tackle. Let him win contested catches near the sideline, move the chains without taking the kind of punishment that comes from constant work between the hashes, and give Tampa Bay a better shot at keeping him available when it matters most.
In Other News...
Emeka Egbuka Is Already Shaping More Than The Bucs Offense
Emeka Egbuka has quickly become part of the Buccaneers everyday conversation for reasons that go well beyond what he does on the field. In his second NFL season, the wide receiver has leaned into a Christian faith that he says anchors his life, and that foundation has carried into the Tampa Bay locker room, where he has taken part in Bible studies with teammates and found support from players and staff who have helped shape his spiritual growth.
For Egbuka, faith is not just a personal detail tucked away from football, but something he says gives him hope, strength and peace in a demanding profession. That kind of presence can matter in a locker room, especially for a young player still growing into his role, and it helps explain why his influence around the Bucs has started to stretch well beyond the offense. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Receivers Just Added A Wild New Twist To Franchise History
The Buccaneers receiver room found itself in an unusual bit of franchise history this season, with Chris Godwin and Emeka Egbuka both turning in the kind of scoring sequence that stands out even in a league that has seen nearly everything. Sports Illustrated recognized the pair as co-winners of its 2025 Octopus of the Year award, honoring players who score a touchdown and then follow it with two successful two-point conversions in the same game.
Godwin did it against the Falcons in Week 15, while Egbuka pulled off the same rare sequence earlier against the Seahawks. Together, their efforts accounted for two of the three such scoring feats in the NFL this season, a quirky distinction that speaks to just how impactful Tampa Bays pass catchers were when the offense needed points in tight spots. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Suddenly Have A Bigger Ayden Garnes Question Than Expected
Ayden Garnes went from undrafted rookie to one of the more intriguing names in Buccaneers camp almost as soon as the pads came on. He flashed in training camp, then backed it up in the preseason with an interception returned for a touchdown in the opener, the kind of play that gets a player noticed quickly in Tampa Bay. By the time the roster was trimmed, he had earned a place on the 53-man roster and looked like a backup corner with a real chance to push for more.
Now the question around Garnes is no longer whether he belongs in the conversation, but how soon the Buccaneers might need him to be more than depth. A player who impressed enough to make the team after entering as an undrafted rookie naturally carries a different kind of intrigue once the season begins, especially at a position where opportunity can appear fast. For Tampa Bay, Garnes has already gone from camp story to rostered defender, and the next step may be just as revealing. [Read more 🡒]