Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin suffered a neck injury at some point over the last few days, and he was limited in practice all week. Will Godwin be able to play in Sunday’s playoff rematch against the Philadelphia Eagles or will the Bucs be shorthanded?
What’s the Latest on Chris Godwin’s Injury?
Godwin was limited in practice on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday due to his neck injury.
It was surprising to see Godwin on the injury report, as he didn’t appear to get hurt during Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos.
Godwin played 51 of 57 snaps and was one of the lone bright spots for the Bucs during the disappointing 26-7 loss to Denver, finishing with six catches, a team-high 53 yards, and the Bucs’ lone touchdown.
Three straight games with a TD to open the season for Chris Godwin 👀 pic.twitter.com/89BplVMFBs
— NFL Fantasy Football (@NFLFantasy) September 22, 2024
Whenever a player has a neck injury, fans and fantasy managers are understandably concerned.
Fortunately, Godwin seems to be fine. In fact, he doesn’t even have an injury designation heading into Sunday’s game against the Eagles.
Fantasy Outlook on Godwin
If there’s one injury that concerns me more than anything, it’s a neck issue, which limited Godwin at practice throughout this week.
The good news is that, like teammate Mike Evans, Godwin is set to play and isn’t listed on the injury report after limited practices on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.
Godwin has been as good as any wide receiver in the NFL through three weeks. His 21.4 fantasy points per game currently ranks fourth in the NFL. If he continues on this pace, it will be a career year for him. Given where he was selected in fantasy drafts, he’s looking like one of the biggest steals of the fantasy season thus far.
Helping Godwin’s cause has been incredible touchdown efficiency. He’s never been a prolific scorer, yet so far, he has a touchdown in every game.
Godwin has already exceeded his touchdown total from the entire 2023 season and is an every-week high-WR2.
He’s seen eight targets in all three games this season, and he joins Philadelphia Eagles WR DeVonta Smith as the only two players in the league with at least six grabs in all three weeks this season.
When Liam Coen took over the Bucs’ offensive coordinator, he said that he would be moving Godwin back to the slot and said he would be playing the Cooper Kupp role in this offense. He has done exactly that, and he’s been nothing short of phenomenal. All signs point to that continuing against Philadelphia this week now that his neck injury isn’t a concern.
The Eagles allow the second-most yards per slot pass this season (11.5), with four of the 17 such completions against them finishing in pay dirt. That’s a blemish that figures to be magnified in this spot – Godwin has caught 13 of 16 slot targets for 192 yards and a pair of scores this season (all other Bucs from the slot: 11-122-2 on 15 targets).
If you’re buying Baker Mayfield as a legitimate option this week against Philadelphia, you’ve got to have Godwin ranked inside of your top 15. Personally, I have Godwin ranked as my WR12 and I’m losing sleep thinking that I may not be high enough.