The Tampa Bay Times reported Monday that Buccaneers receiver Chris Godwin (ankle) will not participate in team-related activities at the start of training camp. Let’s examine what that means for Godwin and Tampa Bay’s passing game heading into this season, which has a lot of Fantasy firepower, including Baker Mayfield, Mike Evans, Godwin, Emeka Egbuka, and Jalen McMillan.
The Buccaneers’ aerial attack should be explosive once again in 2025, even with offensive coordinator Liam Coen gone. Josh Grizzard will now call plays in Tampa Bay, and he was the team’s pass game coordinator last season for Coen, which is a plus.
In 2024, Mayfield set career highs in passing yards (4,500), touchdowns (41), and rushing yards (378). He also rushed for three touchdowns and finished with 16 interceptions and two fumbles.
Mayfield should be considered a No. 1 Fantasy quarterback in all leagues, and he’s worth drafting right after the Fab Five (Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, Jayden Daniels, Joe Burrow, and Jalen Hurts) come off the board. I would also draft Patrick Mahomes ahead of Mayfield, and he’s my No. 7 quarterback this season. You can start to look for Mayfield as early as Round 7 in one-quarterback leagues, and he’s a Round 2 selection in Superflex.
You might fear some regression for Mayfield, and standout left tackle Tristan Wirfs (knee) could miss 2-4 weeks to start the season. But Mayfield also has one of the best receiving corps in the NFL — if everyone is healthy.
That leads us to Godwin, who was awesome last season before getting hurt. He suffered a season-ending ankle injury in Week 7, and Godwin averaged 19.7 PPR points per game, which was second only to Ja’Marr Chase (23.7). Godwin was on pace for 121 catches, 1,399 yards, and 12 touchdowns, and he was better than Evans during that stretch.
It appears like the Buccaneers will be cautious with Godwin, who signed a three-year, $66 million contract this offseason. Todd Bowles said in June that he was hopeful Godwin would be ready for Week 1, but now we have to see what develops over the next few weeks.
When healthy, Godwin could be a top-15 Fantasy receiver in all leagues, but we have to see how he’ll mesh with Egbuka and even McMillan. Remember, McMillan didn’t break out until the end of 2024 when Godwin was out.
The earliest I would draft Godwin is Round 6 in most formats, but he could fade the longer he’s not practicing with the team. That could lead to a great value pick, and I’m hopeful Godwin will be fine for Week 1.
Evans will be the first Tampa Bay receiver drafted this season, and his Average Draft Position will likely be in Round 4. He just had another outstanding season in 2024 at 17.2 PPR points per game. It was his 11th season in a row with at least 1,000 receiving yards (1,004), and he scored double digits in touchdowns (11) for the sixth time in his career.
But he turns 32 in August, and we could finally start to see Evans fail to deliver on his consistent production. Keep in mind that he missed four games in 2024 with an injured hamstring, and now there’s significant competition for targets. Last season, before Godwin went out, Evans was averaging just 14.3 PPR points per game. That’s solid production, but it’s not elite. I’m not reaching for Evans before Round 5 in all leagues.
Egbuka, the No. 19 overall pick in the first round of the NFL Draft, should benefit the most the longer Godwin is out. Egbuka set the Ohio State career reception record with 205, which he turned into 2,868 yards and 24 touchdowns in 49 career games, and he could be a solid weapon in the slot.
Even if Godwin is healthy, you should take a late-round flier on Egbuka given his upside, and he should find a way to earn playing time as the year goes on. That timeline would just get accelerated if Godwin misses any time.
You should also have interest in McMillan if Godwin is sidelined, and Grizzard recently talked up McMillan on The Ronde Barber Show. I would draft McMillan with a late-round pick in all leagues.
“Where J-Mac (Jalen McMillan) left last season, and the progress he showed on and off the field, you could see that carry over into the spring,” Grizzard said. “With not having Chris out there and bringing Emeka along, and him showing Emeka the ropes … then his ability to just do that, and be himself, and really just take off where he left off.”
Last year, with Godwin out, McMillan closed the season with seven touchdowns in his final five games, and he scored at least 16.7 PPR points in each outing. He has plenty of upside, even if he’s in a secondary role.
My outlook for Cade Otton won’t change with Godwin’s health, and Otton is only worth a late-round flier in tight-end premium leagues. When Godwin and Evans both got hurt in Week 7, Otton had three games in a row with at least 18 PPR points, and it appeared like he would be a go-to target for Mayfield. But when Evans returned and McMillan emerged, Otton disappeared, and it’s hard to expect consistent production from him this season with the addition of Egbuka.
I’m also not changing my outlook for Bucky Irving and Rachaad White. Irving is worth drafting in Round 2 in all leagues, and hopefully he’ll pick up where last season ended. He scored at least 16.3 PPR points in seven of his final nine games, including the playoffs. And in his final four outings, Irving had at least 19 total touches in each outing.
White is a good reserve running back to target with a mid-round pick in all leagues. His stock is on the decline because of Irving, but White has at least 50 receptions in three years in a row. And he averaged a career-best 4.3 yards per carry last season and matched his career-high with nine total touchdowns. He could be a lottery ticket if Irving were to miss any time.
For the receivers, a lot will change if Godwin isn’t ready for Week 1. He has plenty of time to get back to 100 percent, but we don’t love that he’s not practicing with the team at the start of training camp.
