Chris Godwin Left Serious Money on the Table to Stay With Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay pass catcher reportedly had serious interest from the New England Patriots.

Godwin left money on the table to return to the Buccaneers. / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Wide receiver Chris Godwin signed a three-year, $66 million contract with the Buccaneers on Monday—and in his decision to return to the team that drafted him back in 2017, he left a lot of money on the table.

"Chris Godwin, from my understanding, left about $20 million on the table," NFL Network's Ian Rapoport told The Pat McAfee Show.

"I know New England was in that pretty heavy," he later continued. "But if you like where you are, and they tug at the heartstrings and they do everything they can to get you to stay, a lot of times it's hard to say no. And I think that's what we're seeing here."

"From my understanding Chris Godwin left about $20M on the table..

I know New England was in on him pretty heavy..

He clearly liked where he was in Tampa Bay"@RapSheet #PMSLive https://t.co/NHJU1vJtke pic.twitter.com/UFxBjMoMXr

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 10, 2025

After the Bucs decided not to place the franchise tag on Godwin, he entered the first free agency of his career as one of the top wide receiver options on the market before quickly returning home.

Although he underwent surgery last October after dislocating ankle and missing the remainder of the season, Godwin has notched 1,000-yard seasons in four of his last six seasons. Given the term and money attached to his contract, Tampa Bay likely believes he'll return to full health for next season and beyond.

---

More NFL on Sports Illustrated

feed