ESPN draft analyst thinks there's a concerning reason lurking behind Bucs' idea to draft Emeka Egbuka in Round 1
Naturally, there are some big questions that come with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' decision to draft Emeka Egbuka in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft and maybe the biggest of them all is its relation to Chris Godwin's recovery from a severe ankle injury he suffered in Week 7.If there is any relation, […]
Naturally, there are some big questions that come with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' decision to draft Emeka Egbuka in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft and maybe the biggest of them all is its relation to Chris Godwin's recovery from a severe ankle injury he suffered in Week 7.
If there is any relation, at all.
Count ESPN draft analyst Louis Riddick as one of the many people who believe there is causation involved between the two. Especially when considering the fact Egbuka and Godwin are similar players when it comes to traits and their role in the Bucs offense.
"I think that surprised me a little bit," Riddick told Scott Van Pelt after the first round of the draft. "I think that surprised me because it probably tells you a little bit of something about maybe what's going on with Chris Godwin, who suffered that, you know, horrific lower leg injury this year for Tampa Bay, and what does that mean for him next year? Is there something going on in that situation?
"Mike Evans is getting a little older now at 31 years old. So I think that one kind of caught everyone off guard, as far as that's concerned. But Egbuka is a fantastic receiver – he's very similar to Chris Godwin in the fact that he works in the slot primarily, and he's tough as heck and he's fast and he catches the ball in contested environments all the time, but you can move him outside."
Jason Licht says Godwin is on track and the plan is to be ready for Week 1
As it turns out, Bucs general manager shed some light on Godwin's situation when he spoke with reporters after the pick.
"Chris is still on track, we’re still shooting for Week 1 with him," said Licht. "This had nothing to do, really, with Chris’s injury rehab right now; this had everything to do with [the fact that] he was a player that Todd [Bowles] and I, and our staffs – obviously, we had a lot of meetings – but Todd and I, at the end of the day, we had some players and said, ‘If this player is here, we’re going to take him and we’re going to be happy with him.’”
Granted, Licht isn't going to come out and say Godwin hit a wall so the team is worried and draft Egbuka in order to help "offset" things. At the same time though, Godwin alluded things were going well when he spoke with reporters after he signed his extension, so the message is consistent, at least.
And to be fair, Godwin and Mike Evans typically miss some amount of time each year due to injury. Whether it's a minor, nagging injury that pulls them out of a game early or something more sever that forces them to miss a game or games. Godwin has just one fully healthy season under his belt since 2019 and Evans has missed six games since 2021 and has played 50% of offensive snaps or less in three additional games.
The idea of Godwin being off track in terms of his recovery is a bit concerning, mainly because he just signed that three-year, $66 million extension back in March. The Bucs wouldn't have inked him to the deal if things weren't going well and the New England Patriots wouldn't have offered him the extra $20-$30 million, either. Still, setbacks are setbacks for a reason: No one sees them coming until it's too late. So, establishing some form of protection is always a good idea.
Regardless, the Bucs certainly have the NFL's deepest wide receiver room heading into Day 2 of the draft and the 2025 season. If they can figure out a way to make this work effectively, sans injury need, then Baker Mayfield and Co. will be as lethal as ever. Especially when considering the complementary running game that took over last year.
