Reports: Buccaneers Predicted to Replace $60 Million WR With Dynamic Mizzou Elite
Four weeks into the 2024 season, here are Missouri’s three strongest performers leading the offensive and defensive units.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are witnessing some of the best performances of veteran wide receiver Chris Godwin’s career as the 2024 NFL season begins.
However, this doesn’t guarantee that Godwin will remain in Tampa Bay beyond this year, as he is in the final season of a three-year, 60millioncontractextensionsignedinMarch2022.Currently,theBuccaneershavetwowidereceivers,includingNFLAll−ProMikeEvans,eachmakingover 20 million this season.
This situation has led CBS Sports’ Josh Edwards to project that the Buccaneers will select the explosive Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden III with the 14th overall pick in his latest 2025 NFL mock draft.
“Chris Godwin has been Tampa Bay’s most effective pass catcher this season, so the Bucs may hesitate to let him leave after the season,” Edwards noted. “The fact is, he will be a free agent, and the team could benefit from adding a dynamic player at a more affordable price.”
Burden has emerged as one of college football’s most exciting wide receivers over the past two seasons, earning All-SEC and Associated Press All-American honors in 2023 with 86 catches for 1,212 yards and 9 touchdowns over 13 games.
Oregon State offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga was selected as the 14th overall pick by the New Orleans Saints in the 2024 NFL Draft, signing a four-year, $ 17.3 million rookie contract.
Burden’s Playmaking Skills Ready for the NFL
Burden would have likely been a first-round pick in the 2024 draft if not for NFL rules requiring players to be three years removed from high school to be eligible.
As the top offensive player in the Class of 2022 out of East St. Louis (Ill.) High School, he chose to stay close to home, selecting Mizzou over finalists Georgia and Alabama.
So far this season, with Missouri starting 4-0, Burden has recorded 19 receptions for 257 yards and 4 touchdowns, including a standout performance of 6 catches for 117 yards and 1 touchdown in a Week 3 victory against Boston College.
Godwin at the Center of Offseason Trade Speculation
While Chris Godwin currently leads Tampa Bay with 21 receptions, 253 receiving yards, and 3 touchdowns through the first three games of the 2024 season, he was often mentioned in trade rumors during the offseason.
ESPN’s Aaron Schatz highlighted the significance of the Buccaneers securing a contract extension for Godwin before training camp, a move that ultimately didn’t happen and becomes costlier for the team with each strong performance from Godwin.
“Godwin’s contract expires after the 2024 season, but let’s not complicate things,” Schatz stated. “He is undoubtedly an above-average NFL starting wide receiver, and the Buccaneers would like to keep him. An extension could also help distribute the cap impact over the three years where the Bucs would be incurring dead money on his current deal.”
In 2020, Godwin missed four games due to injuries but still recorded 65 receptions for 840 yards and 7 touchdowns in 12 games. He returned just in time for the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl run, contributing 16 receptions for 232 yards and 1 touchdown in four postseason games.
As he entered 2024, Godwin was riding a streak of three consecutive seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards, and he set a career high with 104 receptions in 2022.