There are a lot of changes coming to the Bucs offense this year with new offensive coordinator Dave Canales. While there will be a major focus on the run game, the player who can benefit from it the most when the Bucs throw the ball is wide receiver Chris Godwin.
A very exciting season is coming up for Godwin, who is entering his sophomore year after returning from his torn ACL injury. It’s the season after that where a player who got that injury really bounces back and feels himself. But even as he dipped his toe back into NFL waters, he recorded 104 catches, 1,023 yards and three touchdowns in 14 games. Add to that the six receptions he made in the Bucs’ only postseason game and Godwin recorded the most single-season receptions in franchise history.
Not bad.
Godwin will be used differently, but better
Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
What he did last season is more than respectable. However, some of those receptions can be misinterpreted as the Bucs power fed him the ball on fencing plays where there were no blockers for it and Godwin had to run through a pack of defenders each time to fight for a yard. Some of the game designs didn’t really have a rhyme or reason and it played a part in Godwin missing three games in the beginning.
But that’s going to change for Godwin this season. Why? He goes back outside. Godwin played mostly in the slot for the Bucs last year, where he’ll still be shooting shots this season, but he’ll get many more to use his skills.
Godwin played 453 snaps (72.9%) in the slot compared to 166 (26.7%) on the outside. That is a big difference between the two places. Speaking to wide receivers coach Brad Idzik, he sees Godwin as a player who can still win his one-on-one fights, which will put him in great situations in this new offense.
“You’ll see a little bit of everything,” Idzik said of where the Bucs will play Godwin. “And I know that sounds like coach talk, right? “Oh, I don’t want to reveal our trade secrets.” Chris [has shown] asked that he can stretch the field and that’s what I want to remind him of. He can stretch the field. I know he’s recovering from last year’s knee injury, but he’s already shown it beyond that. If you put him outside, this guy is a one-on-one problem. The thing he brings to the slot to me is an advantage for Chris and those are things that he naturally does. That just opens its window.
Idzik has plans for Godwin and Evans
Bucs WRs Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. – Photo by: USA Today
Idzik talked about formulating a plan similar to what he had to coach the Seahawks wide receivers with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. He goes from coaching them to combining two of the best receivers in the game today with Godwin and Mike Evans.
There were times when it was difficult for a Bucs receiver to create separation and open up. That will not be the case this season given the talent both players have.
“We talked about getting out of a room in Seattle where with DK [Metcalf], we continued to develop its guess work from an external receiver,” Idzik said. “Chris has already shown that and he already has experience with that, so we can immediately use him in many different ways. But yeah, I don’t think we’re going to lose some of that external stuff either if you just say, ‘Hey Chris, go win one-on-one, or hey Mike, go win one-on-one outside. ‘”
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