The Bucs’ 41-31 loss to the Ravens on Monday Night Football was bad enough when the story was about a second-quarter hamstring injury to Mike Evans and an embarrassing night for the defense. But everything got even worse with less than a minute to go when Chris Godwin went down with a gruesome ankle injury, one that led to him being carted off the field with an air cast on his leg.

Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: USA Today

The ESPN broadcast declined to show a replay of the injury to Godwin, but the video circulated on Twitter/X and, to put it lightly, it didn’t look good.

It was clear from the reaction of the Bucs’ players who were near the play that this was another devastating injury for Godwin, who already had to battle back from one season-ending injury earlier in his career when he tore his ACL and MCL in December 2021.

Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield was visibly shaken, and a number of players removed their helmets and crouched down to pray for the Bucs’ leading receiver in 2024.

Baker Mayfield and teammates are praying for Chris Godwin after suffering an injury late in the game.

Cart is coming out. #Bucs pic.twitter.com/E3CMsaQ8EE

— Logan B. Robinson (@LogansTwitty) October 22, 2024

Todd Bowles Provides Initial Update On Chris Godwin’s Injury

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: USA Today

After the game, Bucs head coach Todd Bowles provided an early update on Chris Godwin. While there is no final word just yet, the initial diagnosis is heartbreaking for Godwin and the team as a whole.

“He’s got an ankle. Early indication is that it’s dislocated,” Bowles said. “We’ll see. It didn’t look good.”

Tampa Bay was down 10 points with under a minute to go when the injury happened, and it had no timeouts. That begs the question of why Godwin – as well as the rest of the starting offense – was still in the game. Bowles was asked as much in his post-game press conference.

“He’s a player. We’re trying to win the ball game,” he said. “We were still down 10, we were trying to get extra points and kick another onside kick. It just happened. With Mike [Evans] going down, we didn’t have that many receivers left as it was. So, we play what we got.”

But with Evans already injured and the Bucs set to play another game in just six days, wouldn’t it be wise to protect Godwin at that point in the game?

“You can say that because he got hurt. We don’t second-guess,” Bowles said. “We’ve got our guys. We’re playing everybody we’ve got. It’s unfortunate he got hurt, and we feel bad about that. But he’s a football player. He wanted to be in the game, just like Baker [Mayfield] and everybody else wanted to be in the game.

When asked whether he has an obligation to protect his players from themselves, Bowles maintained that this wasn’t one of those situations.

“I do protect my players all the time,” he said. “That has nothing to do with why we left him in the ball game. We still had a shot to score some points and win the ball game. It happened. It happens in football.

The Impact Of Losing Chris Godwin Can’t Be Overstated

Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R

It goes without saying that a dislocated ankle would end Chris Godwin’s season after just seven games. And it also goes without saying that losing Godwin is an absolute gut punch to the Bucs.

“Our prayers are out for him. 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. You feel bad for him. Unfortunately, they’re not gonna cancel the games. We’ve got to step up and move on, but our hearts are heavy.”

Mayfield echoed Bowles’ sentiments after the game.

“It absolutely sucks. It sucks for our team, but Chris deserves better than that,” Mayfield said. “He’s an unbelievable guy, an unbelievable teammate. You guys have seen, he’s been playing extraordinary this year. Yeah, got a heavy heart right now. Never something you want to see to any of your guys. I don’t know what we’re gonna do, but gonna have some guys step up. Thoughts and prayers with Chris and his family right now. It just sucks.”

Operating out of the slot this year in Liam Coen’s offense, Chris Godwin was back to the elite levels he played at prior to his 2021 injury. That’s not to say he wasn’t productive in 2022 and 2023, as he still put up 1,000-yard seasons to extend his streak of such seasons to three. But so far this season, he was looking as good as he ever has.

In seven games, Godwin posted 43 catches for 511 yards (11.9 avg.) and five touchdowns. He was the NFL’s leader in catches and first down receptions, and he entered Week 7 tied with Mike Evans for the league lead in receiving touchdowns. There’s also the added element to all of this, and that’s the fact that Godwin was producing at such a high level in a contract year.

Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: USA Today

As much as this hurts the Bucs offense and impacts the team on the field, there’s also the human dimension of this. Godwin’s injury is as much of a hit to the locker room as it is to the team’s offensive system.

“Chris is an unbelievable veteran presence,” Mayfield said. “Obviously, consistent on the field of play, but what he does, it goes throughout the whole building. How consistent he is, he’s a pro’s pro, does everything the right way, shows up, goes to work every single day, goes out of his way to teach the young guys and bring him under his wing. He’s somebody that anybody in the NFL would want on your team. That’s why this one hurts.”

As frustrating as Monday’s loss was feeling, it would’ve been tolerable. You get over losses, especially in Week 7. But the injury to Chris Godwin? That managed to make everything else feel inconsequential. From a football sense, it sucks. From a human sense, it’s heartbreaking. It hurt to see, and there’s no overstating how devastating this entire situation is to the Bucs, their fans and especially Godwin himself.