Bucs’ Chris Godwin is healthy and eager for new role as he returns to slot

Greg Auman

NFC South Reporter

The Bucs are on their third offensive coordinator in three years, but of all the wrinkles ahead in Liam Coen’s new scheme, one that has generated real excitement is that receiver Chris Godwin will be primarily moving back into the slot — into the role Cooper Kupp played in the same offense when Coen was with the Rams.

Kupp had one of the best seasons in NFL history in 2021, winning the receiving triple crown by leading the league with 145 catches for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns, so there’s a curiosity for Bucs fans — and fantasy football players — around the prospect that Godwin could be in for huge numbers in a 2024 contract year.

“The flexibility of being inside allows me to get more creative,” Godwin said Tuesday after the first OTA practice of the Bucs’ offseason. “It allows me to be more involved in the run game without it being so obvious. It allows other guys to be able to move around a bunch as well. That seems to be part of the emphasis of the offense, allowing guys to be versatile and play in whatever spots we need to be.”

Godwin, still only 28, has put together quite a seven-year run in Tampa alongside Mike Evans. Evans’ streak of 10 straight 1,000-yard seasons and his 94 touchdowns have helped him to five Pro Bowls, but Godwin is quietly No. 2 in Bucs history in catches (529), yards (6,690) and touchdowns (34, tied for second-most ever). Godwin has topped 1,000 yards in three straight seasons despite a torn ACL in the middle of that run, recovering quickly from the Dec. 2021 injury.

That injury played a role in him moving toward more snaps outside, away from the heavy traffic and potential collisions in the middle of the field, and he played all 17 games last year, his first time not missing any games since 2018. Now the Bucs are running a reverse, shifting him back inside where his shiftiness and consistent hands — a 70 percent catch rate over his NFL career —…

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Publish date : 2024-05-22 16:26:22

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