When it was first discovered that the Bucs were going to have a different looking offense this year, many wanted to know what this would mean for star wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Both receivers have established themselves as two of the best in the game, thriving in Bruce Arians’ vertical-based attack and producing 1,000-yard seasons and Pro Bowl berths. So what changes would come for them under Dave Canales implementing his scheme?

Canales brought Seattle’s assistant receivers coach, Brad Idzik, with him from the Seahawks to be the Bucs wide receivers coach. So that’s another change for Evans and Godwin. Canales and Idzik were able to work with another dynamic duo at wide receiver in Seattle with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, another pair of 1,000-yard Pro Bowlers.

Metcalf has recored 4,218 receiving yards and 35 touchdowns in four years while Lockett has carved out a great career 7,100 yards and 54 touchdowns in eight seasons. Each player has had success under the watch of Idzik and Canales, who also served as wide receivers coach when he wasn’t coaching Seattle’s quarterbacks.

Mike Evans and Chris Godwin have had two stellar careers in their own right with Evans continuing to build a Hall of Fame resume. Heading into a system with prior success, would Evans and Godwin play similar roles to that of Metcalf and Lockett? Pewter Report had Brad Idzik on a recent episode of the Pewter Report Podcast where he answered that question and discusses coaching Evans and Godwin at length, and the roles they will play this season.

How Will Mike Evans And Chris Godwin Be Used?

Bucs WRs Chris Godwin and Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Is it really as simple as Mike Evans playing the role DK Metcalf in Dave Canales’ new offense? Bucs wide receivers coach Brad Idzik addressed that topic on the Pewter Report Podcast.

“What it does for us with Mike, obviously you look at he’s 6-4, 6-5, and can run and stretch the field vertically,” Idzik said. “It gives us a good selling point for Mike if we say, ‘Hey, here’s all the stuff you’ve done and I’m going to layer that exactly on with DK. Yes, you have that role. But here’s some other things that we can do with you as well.’

“DK coming in as a rookie and then his progression from year two to three of putting him in the slot – stuff that Mike’s already done – it just helps to have that stuff on tape already. Really, you’ve got to sell the offense to Mike saying, ‘Here’s the roles that we want you in. Here’s where we want you to invest your offseason to be ready for, and know what to expect for this incoming season.”

Then there was Chris Godwin, who Idzik raved about during the Pewter Report Podcast for being the ultimate professional. Godwin didn’t miss one voluntary workout or practice during the offseason programs. Though he’s been a fixture in the slot in recent years in Bruce Arians’ offense, Idzik and Dave Canales believe that Godwin can actually be at his best on the perimeter.

“And then when it comes to Chris, it’s funny – you take a guy that big, for him to be so good in the slot last year,” Idzik said. “Especially, I attribute some of that to being ‘Okay, he’s coming off of rehab,’ he’s still a strong guy that’s going to catch everything and he’s going to run after the catch. So he’s got that under his belt, and now we want to transition him to doing more of the outside stuff that he did earlier. He can do it all still.”

Brad Idzik Explains Nuances Of The New Passing Game

Bucs WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Breaking it all down, the verbiage changes in Dave Canales’ new offense, and there are some differences in certain routes and concepts from what Tampa Bay and Seattle did last year. But Idzik isn’t taking anything away from either receiver’s skillset. All that he and Canales are doing is taking what Mike Evans and Chris Godwin have already done and just adding a bit more to their roles.

And that means they’ll be moving targets in 2023. Evans will still play the X position as the split end, but he’ll also be used in the slot to create favorable matchups at times, and be put in motion similar to how DK Metcalf was used in Seattle. The same thing will happen with Godwin, who will see time in the slot, as well as the Z receiver (flanker), and be put in motion, too.

“We have two big puzzle pieces that can do it all,” Idzik said. “You can just take those roles when you look at DK Metcalf and his progression from year one to two to three and say, ‘Mike, you’ve already done all of this. Now where are all the nuanced changes from? What you called things, to route depth, to footwork, versus what you have done and what we’ll ask you to do here.’

“Those are the things that when you have a lot of experience, some of the things get kind of ingrained in you. Like, ‘Hey, I’m fourth outside on this route, (it) gets me to however many yards.’ It’s like, ‘Alright, well, we want you to stretch it another revolution. We go to break some muscle memory there. We’ve got to put in some new tools. That’s the toughest part.”

Mike Evans, Chris Godwin Will Be Ready To Make Big Plays In Scramble Drills

The best thing about having Mike Evans and Chris Godwin is that they are both humble, coachable and put winning before stats and all else. There is no ego with the Bucs’ terrific tandem, which is hard to find in today’s NFL. Evans and Godwin have been very receptive to the new ideas put forth from Dave Canales and Brad Idzik, and the different adjustments that are coming to the new Bucs offense.

Bucs WRs Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, QB Baker Mayfield and OC Dave Canales – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“Chris, the reps that he’s gotten this offseason, has been awesome. Mike, he picked right up when he came [to OTAs],” Idzik said. “I was like, ‘Hey Mike, I know you’ve been doing this for a long time but can we add two more steps on this route? And he’s like, ‘Oh okay, I got you.’ As long as you tell them why, they’ll buy in. That’s been really awesome. It’s been great to show them a couple guys in DK [Metcalf] and Tyler [Lockett] doing it. Tyler, with the nuance of broken plays and the scramble drill, as well. That, for us, makes it so much easier to coach our guys – ‘Just continue to play.'”

Evans and Godwin both thrived as scramble-drill receivers when Jameis Winston was under center back in the day. Winston’s mobility would extend plays and he routinely found Evans and Godwin down the field on broken plays for big plays. Lockett and Metcalf did the same thing in Seattle, and there will be more of those opportunities in Tampa Bay this year with the amount of rollouts, bootlegs and waggles in the new offense.

“Both Kyle [Trask] and Baker [Mayfield], those are guys that are athletic and they’re going to break the pocket,” Idzik said. “They’re going to extend plays, so you have to be ready for the second play. When we’re building in scrambled reactions, Tyler – there’s not a better guy in the league. There really isn’t. He’s done it time and time again whether it’s Russell Wilson or its Geno Smith, when the play breaks down we say the ball finds energy. Well, Tyler’s always the first guy expending that energy, so we want to build that into our guys [in Tampa Bay] as well.”

Watch Brad Idzik On The Pewter Report Podcast

Check out the recent episode of the Pewter Report Podcast with Special Guest: Bucs WR Brad Idzik by clicking the link below.