The Tampa Bay Buccaneers selected PlayerProfiler favorite, Chris Godwin with the No. 84 overall pick in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Long thought to be one of the more talented wide receivers in this year’s draft class, drafting Chris Godwin in the third round by the Buccaneers was a classic tale of marauders heisting gold and getting richer by the second.
During the offseason, the Buccaneers boosted their needy wide receiver corps with the signing of speedster and deep threat DeSean Jackson to a three-year, $33.5 million deal, providing Jameis Winston with another elite target to pair opposite 2016 targets leader Mike Evans. Gone are the days of Adam Humphries trying to masquerade as an outside no. 2 wide receiver, and the random Freddie Martino excitement is no more. Instead, the Buccaneers and fantasy owners can look forward to an exciting duo on the outside in DeSean Jackson and Mike Evans, while rookie wide receiver Chris Godwin will look to solidify himself as an early third receiver, with the potential to operate in a wide open field.
The Buccaneers led a high volume aerial assault in 2016, reeling off 614 passing plays (No. 15), while targeting Mike Evans on 30-percent of those plays equating to 171 targets (No. 1 among NFL wide receivers). Playing behind one of the worst pass blocking offensive lines last season, evidenced by a 54.8 (No. 22) pass protection score on PlayerProfiler.com in 2016, Jameis Winston managed to finish 12th among quarterbacks with 4,082 passing yards, and was seventh in the league with 28 touchdowns. Given his success with a limited wide receiver and tight end corps (sorry Cameron Brate), it’s no wonder the hype for Winston in 2017 is growing given his new repertoire heading into the season.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0-nLPn34_g
All that being said, let’s have a look at the man of the hour, Chris Godwin.
Chris Godwin brings to the Buccaneers the size and athleticism to play on both the outside and the inside when needed. At 6-foot-1, 209-pounds, Godwin possesses a 4.42 40-yard dash (89th-percentile), 109.5 Speed Score (89th-percentile), 11.01 Agility Score (71st-percentile) and 128.3 SPARQ-x Score (98th-percentile). His 10.15 Catch Radius (76th-percentile) is second on the team behind Mike Evans, which is plenty reason for optimism for one of the most athletic receivers in this year’s rookie class.
Chris Godwin Advanced Stats & Metrics Profile
No stranger to dominating football games, Chris Godwin also has a 19.5 Breakout Age (77th-percentile) and 16.6 college yards per reception (77th-percentile) to compliment a 34.9-percent College Dominator Rating (66th-percentile).
Check out Chris Godwin on the Updated PlayerProfiler Dynasty Rankings:
The only perceived threat to Godwin’s workload appears to be Adam Humphries, whose severe lack of athleticism, playmaking and consistent hands should phase him out pretty quickly. While he may hold onto his job at the start of training camp, Adam Humphries looks to be overcome by Chris Godwin‘s superior athleticism quickly and will likely be relegated to fringe fantasy WR status barring injuries to his fellow wide receivers.
Adam Humphries Advanced Stats & Metrics Profile
There may not be a more ideal situation for rookie wide receivers this year than the one Chris Godwin finds himself in heading into 2017. He will lineup with two elite targets in Mike Evans and DeSean Jackson, and is in a high volume passing offense that boasts one of the premier young quarterbacks in the league with Jameis Winston. With opportunity looking to be aplenty, the Buccaneers and owners of Chris Godwin can be justifiably excited about the rookies potential for 2017 and beyond.
