Chris Godwin was en route to record his best season in the NFL, going into the week 7 clash against the Ravens. But tragedy struck as the Bucs WR suffered a gruesome leg injury that even ESPN refused to show the replay of. He had to be carted off of the field as the Bucs fell to a 41-13 defeat. HC Todd Bowles provided an update after the game, saying that the player may have dislocated his ankle.

Reports confirmed the injury and the 28-year-old is slated to have surgery, making his return before the end of the season unlikely. Well, such a huge setback comes in a season where Godwin was leading the reception chart in the NFL (50). Unfortunately, his injury occurred with less than one minute remaining in the game after he took a shot from Ravens linebacker Roquan Smith. After the news of his injury and surgery was confirmed, Godwin finally came out to break his silence.

Team Godwin Foundation posted a message from the WR on Instagram. “Have faith that what’s on the other side of the storm, is sunshine.” Coming into this clash, Godwin had recorded 43 receptions for 511 yards with 5 TDs. He was even catching attention for his connection with Baker Mayfield this season. Even before his exit in Tampa, Godwin recorded seven catches for 65 yards. Missing such output week in and week out is surely going to hurt the Bucs after their third loss of the season.

Well, Mayfield also expressed his concerns while offering prayers for his teammate’s brutal leg injury, “It’s never something you want to see to any of yours guys. I don’t know what we’re going to do, but, gonna have some guys step up, but yeah, thoughts and prayers with Chris.” As the race for the NFC South title heats up, Mayfield spoke about the importance of looking forward.

“It’s a short week, and we play Atlanta for first place in the division. Guys have to step up. It’s the nature of this business. It s—-. I’m going to think about Chris and Mike for a while,” he said.

His injury in the Ravens game was the second blow the Bucs suffered after WR Mike Evans suffered a hamstring injury in the second quarter. As the Bucs lost two of their crucial players this week, is the coach anywhere to blame for the injuries?

Todd Bowles under fire as the Bucs lose Chris Godwin for the season

At the time of Godwin’s injury, the Bucs were already trailing by 10 points as the clock ran down to zero. Even after losing Mike Evans in the first quarter, the Bucs kept pushing, with Chris Godwin leading the charge. However, they didn’t just lose the game; they also lost their most explosive receiver in the final minute.

Offering his thoughts on that final drive, Bucs coach Todd Bowles said, “He’s a player, we’re trying to win the b— game. We were still down 10. We’re trying to get extra points and kick another onside kick, it just happened.”

Although the Bucs didn’t end up scoring on that drive, Bowles was seemingly criticized for leaving Godwin on the field, “You could say that because he got hurt. We don’t second guess. We got our guys, we’re playing everybody we got. It’s unfortunate he got hurt and we feel bad about that, but he’s a football player and he wanted to be in the game.” This decision could prove costly for the Bucs, as Godwin was leading the NFL charts in targets and receptions. He was even second in receiving yards before leaving last night.

This makes us question whether the Bucs can cope without their charismatic receiver and will his absence will further hurt the Bucs this season which see them sitting with a 4-3 record.