It didn't take long for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to start making waves in the free agency pool this year. Perhaps the biggest name everyone was keeping an eye on was Chris Godwin, who was set to hit the market for the first time in his career.
Much like another Buccaneers wide receiver a year ago in an identical situation, Godwin pulled a Wolf of Wall Street and decided not to go anywhere. Despite the noise we heard over the weekend about Godwin getting wooed away by a team like New England or Jacksonville, he ended up agreeing to a three-year, $66 million deal to remain in Tampa Bay.
It's a massive deal, not just in terms of the dollar amount. Godwin has proven to be a key piece of the Buccaneers' offense and losing him would have created a big void and placed incredible pressure on Jalen McMillan. Now the Bucs get to head into next season with a three-headed monster at wide receiver for Baker Mayfield and first-year offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard.
As if Godwin coming back to Tampa Bay wasn't already incredible enough, hearing that he left gobs of money on the table to do so makes it feel even more special.
Chris Godwin left $20 million on the table to return to Buccaneers
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport revealed just how much money Godwin bypassed to return to Tampa Bay. While he didn't go as far as to name any other teams that made offers, aside from the Patriots, Rapoport notes that Godwin left as much as $20 million on the table to re-sign with the Buccaneers.
"From my understanding, Chris Godwin left about $20 million on the table," Rapoport said. "New England was in there pretty heavy, but if you where you are, and they tug at the heartstrings, and do everything they can to get you to stay, a lot of times it's hard to say no."
Tampa Bay took care of Godwin financially, paying him around $22 million per season, but he could have reached DK Metcalf-levels had he not bypassed other offers to accept what the Bucs gave him. That speaks to how fantastic the relationships are inside of the building and how tight the locker room is, despite some of the vocal complaints about leadership last season from fans.
If Todd Bowles was really that bad, or the coaching was so unstable, Godwin would not have returned. Neither would Mike Evans or Baker Mayfield, or any of the players who in years past might have left Tampa Bay for greener pastures.
Tampa Bay is the green pasture, and that's a testament to the work Bowles, Jason Licht, and everyone else has done in making Buccaneers culture one that players want to be a part of. We saw it with Godwin returning as well as Haason Reddick signing a free agent deal, not to mention the reward that Ben Bredeson got.
For as bleak as things looked after the Tom Brady era ended, and for as dark as times have been in the past decade before, to have the Buccaneers be a destination players take less money to play for is a pretty great feeling to enjoy.
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