Chris Godwin's 2025 season never really gave the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a chance to see the version of the veteran receiver they were hoping to get back on the field. ESPN's Eric Moody believes that could change in 2026.
As part of ESPN's bold fantasy football predictions for the upcoming season, Moody predicted Godwin will finish as a top-30 fantasy wide receiver.
Godwin was still working his way back from the serious ankle injury he suffered during the 2024 season and appeared in only nine games last year. He finished the season with 33 receptions on 51 targets for 360 yards and two touchdowns.
Moody pointed back to Godwin's production before that injury as one reason to believe a rebound could be coming. According to Moody, Godwin was averaging
19.6 fantasy points before going down in 2024.
There was also at least one reminder late last season of what Godwin can still provide when healthy. In Week 17 against the Miami Dolphins, Godwin caught seven of his eight targets for 108 yards and a touchdown. That performance was good for 23.8 PPR fantasy points, easily his best fantasy outing of the season.
Godwin's opportunity could be another reason for optimism.
Moody projects Godwin to receive the second-most targets among Buccaneers receivers in 2026, trailing only Emeka Egbuka. If Godwin can stay healthy and regain more of the form he showed before the ankle injury, that type of workload would give him a legitimate opportunity to outperform what fantasy managers saw from him last season.
A top-30 finish wouldn't necessarily require Godwin to return all the way to his pre-injury production. After two seasons largely defined by his recovery, simply getting a healthy and consistent Godwin back into Tampa Bay's passing attack could make him one of the more interesting rebound candidates on the Buccaneers' roster.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Bucs WR Chris Godwin tabbed for major fantasy football rebound in 2026
