Tampa Bay Buccaneers franchise player Chris Godwin reached agreement on a three-year, $60 million deal that includes $40 million fully guaranteed at signing, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Jenna Laine on Wednesday.
Godwin wanted a three-year deal so he could become a free agent again at 29, and the Bucs were able to lower his first-year cap hit to just $5 million by adding void years to the deal, lowering it from the $19 million he’d have commanded with the tag, sources told Laine.
The Bucs placed their franchise tag on the veteran wide receiver for the second straight year on March 8. The sides had until July 15 to agree to a long-term contract, or Godwin would have played the 2022 season on a franchise tender worth $19.18 million.
Godwin suffered a torn ACL in the Bucs’ Week 15 loss to the New Orleans Saints, ending his season. Even with the injury, he finished the season with a team-leading 1,103 receiving yards and 98 receptions.
Godwin, who turned 26 in February, underwent surgery this offseason to repair the injury. Coach Bruce Arians said at the NFL combine that Godwin was about 40% healed from the injury and that he had no concerns about the receiver’s ability to bounce back.
“Knowing Chris and the way he works — he had a good surgery, and those guys are coming back faster and faster now — I don’t think that’s going to be a problem at all,” Arians said.
Last year, the Bucs could not reach an agreement on a new contract with Godwin, instead placing the franchise tag on him worth $16 million. Over the past three seasons, Godwin has notched 3,276 receiving yards — eighth-most in the league in that span — while his 249 catches rank 10th and his 21 touchdowns 12th.
He has 342 receptions for 4,643 yards and 29 touchdowns in five seasons.