The NFL deadline for teams to apply a franchise or transition tag to players is Tuesday, March 8 at 4 p.m. ET, and there's now some movement on that front from around the league. The first domino to fall was in Kansas City, where the Chiefs are expected to franchise tag All-Pro offensive tackle Orlando Brown, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have seemingly become the second in line to keep a high-profile talent from seeing 2022 NFL free agency -- namely All-Pro wideout Chris Godwin.
The Bucs are reportedly set to apply the franchise tag to Godwin, per Tyler Dragon of USA Today, marking the second time they've done it in as many seasons. The move would fully guarantee a projected 2022 salary of $19.13 million, and the two sides would have until mid-July to agree on a long-term deal or Godwin would be forced to play under the tag next season before revisiting free agency in 2023.
The 26-year-old was on track to potentially produce a career-best season in 2021 before suffering a torn ACL that cut his campaign short in December while also placing doubt on his ability to be ready for the start of the 2022 season. General manager Jason Licht clearly has no concerns on if Godwin will return and be a force yet again for the Buccaneers, but it remains to be seen if that extends only to asking him -- yet again -- to prove it before committing big money on a multi-year deal.
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So while it's possible Godwin lands a big deal in Tampa this offseason, his devastating injury in December muddies the water on what that deal/offer might look like.
The former third-round pick (2017) has been key in helping the productivity of the Bucs offense, initially with Jameis Winston and then with Tom Brady, and is a dominant complement to perennial All-Pro receiver Mike Evans. In 14 starts last season, Godwin racked up 1,103 receiving yards and six total touchdowns -- just two seasons removed from grabbing more than 1,300 receiving yards and nine receiving touchdowns. That's not the type of production the Bucs are willing to let have a sit-down with other NFL teams this offseason.
