Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin is scheduled to undergo ankle surgery this week and sidekick Mike Evans will not play for at least a month due to a hamstring injury.
Head coach Todd Bowles said Tuesday that Godwin is “likely” out for the rest of the season and Evans won’t play until after the Buccaneers’ bye in Week 11 at the earliest.
The day-after feels around One Buc Place in Tampa were dismal due to the injuries, coupled with a 41-31 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night.
Godwin dislocated his ankle according to preliminary tests, Bowles said.
Bowles defended his decision to have Godwin, the NFL’s leader in receptions this season, in the game with the Buccaneers chasing 10 points and 59 seconds remaining.
“We’ve got our guys. We’re playing everybody we’ve got. It’s unfortunate he got hurt, but he’s a football player and he wants to be in the game, just like Baker (Mayfield) and everybody else wanted to be in the game,” Bowles said.
He didn’t appreciate the implied angle that playing a starter, namely Godwin, in the final minute is a failure to protect his key personnel.
“I do protect my players all the time,” Bowles said. “That has nothing to do with why we left him in the ballgame. We still had a shot to score some points and win the ballgame. It happens. It happens in football.”
Godwin had seven receptions for 65 yards Monday night. He has 50 catches for 576 yards and five touchdowns in 2024.
Evans left the game in the first half with the leg injury resulting from a collision in the end zone. He immediately grabbed the back of his right hamstring after his effort to reel in what would have been a 24-yard touchdown.
Godwin was taken to the locker room on the back of a motorized cart just before the game ended. The 28-year-old had his left ankle caught under Baltimore linebacker Roquan Smith at the end of a 21-yard reception.
Reports on Tuesday pointed to elements of the banned hip-drop tackle employed by Smith that caused the NFL to look further into the play.
“Chris is a hell of a player, and he’s a hell of a human being even more so than that,” Bowles said. “There’s not much you can say. … Unfortunately they’re not gonna cancel the games and we gotta step up and move on, but our hearts are heavy.”
