New Bucs offensive coordinator Dave Canales has yet to call a play in the NFL, let alone a play that resulted in a touchdown. But that didn’t stop him from dreaming about the ways Pro Bowl wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin could score touchdowns in Tampa Bay this year.
In studying ways to include Evans and Godwin on the new offense, Canales and new wide receivers coach Brad Idzik first looked at how the Bucs dynamic duo scored in the past. Any good offensive coordinator will adapt their schedule to the talents of the existing players.
And that’s exactly what Canales plans to do with Evans and Godwin this year in Tampa Bay, as he spoke at length about his recent appearance on the Pewter Report Podcast.
“In week one or week two at work, Brad and I flew out and sat down [and said] “Okay, let’s look like the last five or six years of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, and let’s start thinking about how to use these guys,” Canales said. “And after that we couldn’t do anything about it. So we just said, ‘Now let’s look at all of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin’s career touchdowns.’ Those are fun, those are fun projects.”
Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: USA Today
Expect a return to what Evans does best in 2023, which is showing up more as a weapon in the red zone, especially within the 5-yard line on fades and wide receiver screens.
“We have to make that a priority,” said Bucs head coach Todd Bowles during OTAs in May. “Obviously I think we made it a priority last year. Sometimes it got shut down, sometimes we misread it here and there, whether it was on the receiver or on the O-linemen [not holding up in pass protection].
“We need to get better in that area and get him into football. We know he’s a threat and we know he’s a great player. So we constantly have to find ways to get it not only to him but also to Chris .”
After studying Evans and Godwin’s careers all through the off-season, Canales knows well.
Dave Canales will move Mike Evans more in 2023 to open him up
Mike Evans has scored 38 of his franchise-record 81 touchdowns within the 10-yard line. That’s nearly half of his career touchdown production. And he added another 3-yard touchdown against the Saints in a 30-20 win during the 2020 playoffs.
Whether in the red zone or anywhere on the field, Evans and Godwin will continue to be the top two passing targets in any passing game progression under Canales.
Bucs WRs Chris Godwin and Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
“That’s the premise,” Canales said. “You start your passing game – number one in progress – where is Mike and where is Chris? Everyone else will get their touches. That’s how it went for years. But that’s how you build it. And if the defense cooperates, that ball goes there a lot.”
While Evans has built a career in the Hall of Fame as a split end (X receiver), Canales will move him more in 2023, including in the slot, to create more favorable matchups – and hopefully more touchdowns.
Last year, Evans’ touchdowns plummeted from a career-high 14 touchdowns in 2021 to just six last season. After catching three touchdowns in the first three games of the 2022 season, Evans went 11 games without a score before blasting away for three TDs in a 10-catch, 207-yard performance against Carolina in Week 17.
Evans has averaged nine TDs per season since entering the league as a rookie in 2014, when he first set the Bucs’ single-season touchdown record with 12. Godwin, who has averaged six touchdowns per year throughout his career , had only three TDs last. season, but failed to score in the last eight games of the regular season.
“There are different things in different ways we can try to make sure that number 1 progression gets the ball – without giving too much information,” Canales said. “But there are things you can do where [Evans] don’t just sit on the lone side of a 3×1 formation at X and expect him to just physically win all the time.
Mike Evans, Chris Godwin compare favorably to DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett
Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett and Bucs CB Jamel Dean – Photo by: Getty Images
Dave Canales, who spent 13 years in Seattle as both a wide receivers coach and a quarterbacks coach, already has experience working with a pair of Pro Bowl receivers in Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf.
“Yeah, that tandem, that duo up there, it’s not getting faster or bigger,” Canales said of Lockett and Metcalf. “And with our group, what’s the benefit when we compare the two? These two guys (Mike Evans and Chris Godwin) are absolutely dominant pass catchers. They attack it. They go there.
“The range – no one has range like Mike, you know? And to be able to catch the ball quickly – on any platform? And Chris, who makes harder catches than Chris with people all over his back? So I’m really excited about what they’re bringing and seeing that come to life.”
Dave Canales is excited by the other Bucs WRs on the depth chart
But the Bucs wide receiver position doesn’t just begin and end with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Dave Canales raved about the reception area in general and is excited about some of the team’s rookies and young developing players.
Bucs WR Trey Palmer – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
“As for the receivers, Trey Palmer, you see the speed and it’s real,” Canales said. “Being able to track it down on the field and separate it man-to-man. Rakim Jarrett – you know he gets faster with the ball in his hands. His route tree needs to be developed, but on each route you will see that once he catches it, he has this gear and turns into another player with the ball in his hands. It’s fantastic.
“Deven Tompkins, man, he had some nice trails this spring. Then he had a minor injury that he had to come back from, but you’re talking about explosive? Kaylon Geiger, we’re just looking for that slot that receiver that can play inside and separate on choice routes, he can. I was very excited to see Russell [Gage] a little more, but I’ve seen enough of Russ. I am excited about what he can do for us as well.”
These complementary receivers get their catches and yards, and hopefully touchdowns for Tampa Bay. But the primary weapons in the passing game remain Evans and Godwin in Canales’ offense, especially in the red zone.
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