The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and standout wide receiver Chris Godwin have agreed to a change in the structure of his current contract that will give them more time to negotiate on a new one.
Specifically, the contract was changed to make it void on March 12, the date that the NFL's new league year begins, rather than this past Monday, February 17. That means Godwin will remain under contract until that March date, allowing more time for the two sides to work on a potential new contract. If no deal is reached, Godwin will become an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins at 4:00 p.m. ET on that day.
In March of 2022, the Buccaneers placed the franchise tag on Godwin for the second year in a row, then agreed with him on a new three-year deal a week later. That deal covered the 2022-24 season but also included three automatically voiding years (2025-27) to help spread out the cap hit. The Buccaneers would incur a dead cap hit of roughly $19 million in 2025 when that contract voided.
The void date in the original contract was set as February 17 in order to have the 2025 contract expire before the start of the franchise tag window. That would allow the team to utilize the tag on Godwin if it so wished; however, the cost would be prohibitive and thus that was never expected to be an option. Since he would be getting the tag for a third time, Godwin would be guaranteed a 2025 salary of either 144% of his 2024 salary or the current quarterback franchise tag value. This year's franchise tag value for a quarterback is a little over $41 million.
Moving Godwin's void date to March 12 means that he will technically remain under contract in 2025 until that day, and the window to franchise tag a player closes on March 4. That means the Buccaneers now do not have the option of placing the franchise tag on the ninth-year receiver.
Originally a third-round draft pick out of Penn State in 2017, Godwin ranks second in franchise history in most receiving categories, including receptions (579), receiving yards (7,266) and touchdown catches (39). The only player ahead of him on this lists is Mike Evans, and the two have long formed one of the most productive receiving tandems in the NFL. Godwin's career average of 5.2 receptions per game is the highest in team history among qualifying players.
In his eighth season, Godwin was thriving in the Buccaneers' new offense in 2024 before suffering a season-ending dislocated ankle in Week Seven against the Baltimore Ravens. Playing largely out of the slot, Godwin was leading the NFL in receptions (50) and yards after the catch (342) and was among the league leaders in receiving yards (576) and touchdown receptions (five). He was on pace for nearly 1,400 yards, which would have topped his previous career high of 1,333 in 2019, when he made the Pro Bowl. Though the coordinator of that offense, Liam Coen, subsequently left for the head coaching job in Jacksonville, the Buccaneers promoted Josh Grizzard from within to that position, guaranteeing a high level of continuity in the offensive approach in 2025.
