If the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to get any type of return on investment out of wide receiver Chris Godwin this season, they’re going to have to wait a little bit longer.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported on Thursday, November 6, that Godwin’s actual return to the lineup might be even further out than anyone expected.
“(Godwin) aggravated his fibula early in the year and they just don’t want to press it with him,” Fowler said. “They’re thinking late November, December with Chris Godwin. So they’ll take it week to week with him.”
Godwin has now missed 16 of his last 18 games since he suffered a gruesome dislocated left fibula in a Week 7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the 2024 regular season.
That did’t stop the Buccaneers from signing Godwin to a 3-year, $66 million contract in March. The Buccaneers never put Godwin on injured reserve and the general consensus seemed to be that when he did come back, it would be at close to full strength. That just hasn’t been the case.
Godwin missed the first 3 games of the 2025 season then returned for 2 games in which he was almost wholly ineffective. He’s missed the last 3 games after re-aggravating his injury. He has 12 receptions for 56 yards and zero touchdowns.
From 2019 to 2023, Godwin had over 1,000 receiving yards 4 out of 5 years, including 3 consecutive seasons from 2021 to 2023. He also earned NFL All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in 2019.
Mixed Signals From Godwin Early On
One of the bizarre things about Godwin’s recovery process was that he intimated he might be able to return last season if the Buccaneers made a deep playoff run — which was a huge shock to anyone who saw how severed his injury was initially.
While that may have just been gamesmanship on Godwin’s part, the Buccaneers losing to the Washington Commanders at home in the NFC Wild Card Round made that a moot point.
ESPN’s Jenna Laine reported in July that Godwin actually needed a surprise second surgery.
“Multiple sources tell ESPN that Chris Godwin underwent a second procedure on his ankle this spring, shedding further light on his rehab from a dislocated ankle last season,” Laine wrote on her official X account on July 22.
Buccaneers GM’s Genius Moves in NFL Draft
Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht took wide receivers with his first and last picks in the 2025 NFL draft — decisions that could end up saving Tampa Bay’s season.
All 3 of last year’s starting wide receivers are currently out for the Buccaneers with no definite returns in sight; Godwin, Mike Evans (collarbone) and Jalen McMillan (neck).
The Buccaneers took Ohio State wide receiver Emeka Egbuka with the No. 19 overall pick and he’s been one of the NFL’s elite players at his position from the jump — he leads the team with 34 receptions for 562 yards and 5 touchdowns and is the frontrunner for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Seventh round pick (No. 235 overall) Tez Johnson has been no slouch, either.
Johnson, the lightest player in NFL history at 165 pounds, has 15 receptions for 213 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 14 receptions, 205 yards and 2 touchdowns of that coming over the last 4 games.
The Buccaneers are 6-2 and in first place in the NFC South Division headed into a Week 10 home game against the New England Patriots, who are also 6-2.
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