One of the biggest steals in the 2017 NFL draft, Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin landed in one of the NFL’s most promising young offenses.
The Bucs snatched up Godwin with the 84th overall pick in the third round, adding him to an already dangerous unit that includes Mike Evans and DeSean Jackson, along with quarterback Jameis Winston and 2017 first-round pick, O.J. Howard.
Before making the jump to the pros, Godwin put together three solid seasons at Penn State, accumulating nearly 2,500 receiving yards.
In this exclusive interview, Godwin dishes on the game-day atmosphere at Beaver Stadium, what to expect from Nittany Lions running back Saquon Barkley in 2017, what he took from his Rose Bowl opponent and USC QB Sam Darnold, Christian Hackenberg’s situation with the New York Jets and more.
JM: Let’s start with your draft experience. What was it like, waiting to hear your name called?
CG: It was definitely stressful. The whole concept of not knowing where you’re going is the most stressful part. It was a fun experience and stuff, it’s something I’ve always dreamed about but it’s definitely pretty stressful.
JM: Did you have a huge draft party?
CG: No, it wasn’t huge. I just had about 20-30 people. It was mainly my closest family and friends. My girlfriend was there with me. We just got together, enjoyed some food and each other’s company while it all happened.
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JM: You put up some big numbers at the combine. I imagine you looked forward to that for a long time. Was it what you expected?
CG: In a way, it was what I expected. In another way, it wasn’t. The on-field stuff was definitely what I expected it to be. Growing up, I’ve watched the combine every year, that’s something I’ve always enjoyed doing. What you don’t really see on your television is all the stuff that goes on behind the scenes. The interview process, all the psychological testing. I wasn’t necessarily surprised by it, but it was definitely different than I was expecting.
JM: Speaking of all the psychological testing, what’s the weirdest question you were asked?
CG: It’s funny you ask that because to be honest, I didn’t really get asked anything that weird. For the most part, I think a lot of the teams were just trying to figure out who I was as a person being that I declared early. I really didn’t get asked any weird questions.
JM: Were you surprised when the Bucs drafted you? Did they show a lot of interest in you leading up to the draft?
CG: I wasn’t too surprised. After they had drafted me, I kind of reflected on that a little bit. A lot of guys told me that they didn’t have much communication with the teams that picked them, but I had a formal interview with the Bucs at the combine, I had a private workout with them and they also brought me down to Tampa for one of their 30 private visits. I guess looking back on it, I probably should have expected it [laughs].
JM: They really did their due diligence on you. NFL.com’s Matt Harmon charted you as the best contested pass-catcher in the 2017 NFL draft. Is that something that you practice frequently?
CG: I wouldn’t necessarily say that I practice that. I just think that’s a result of all the work that I put in with my other receivers at Penn State, as well as our receivers coach, Josh Gattis. We all took a lot of pride in being able to catch the balls that are thrown our way. That’s something that we kind of worked on during ball drills even before practice. We really focus on making the catches that we should be making. That’s a testament to all of us, and all the work that we put in together.
JM: When you’re looking at the opposition and let’s say that you know he’s hitting you with man coverage in a one-on-one situation, do you have a go to move? Something that gives you more confidence than anything else?
CG: I don’t know that I have a go to move, to be honest. A lot of times, what we do as receivers is based upon the coverage that we’re getting, or just the way that the defensive back is playing us. One of my favorite routes to run are digs, just because I feel like you can run them a lot of different ways. You don’t necessarily have to run them the same way to get the same result.
The quarterback has a couple of different options with how he can throw the ball in order for you to make the catch. There’s a little bit of a toughness aspect to it, as well, because typically with a dig, you’re probably gonna be getting hit soon after you catch the ball. You have to catch it knowing that you’re gonna take a hit.
JM: You mentioned toughness. Do you you think physicality is just as important for a receiver as having good hands? How much does being physical mean to you?
CG: It’s extremely important. In the NFL especially, these guys are the best players in the world at what they do. Everybody’s strong, everybody’s physical and everybody’s fast. If you’re a bigger guy like myself, you have to be able to use your physicality to your advantage. Some smaller guys who are quicker and faster, they can get away with not being as physical because they make up for it in other areas. When you’re bigger, you have to be a physical guy.
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JM: What’s it like playing at Beaver Stadium?
CG: Oh, man [laughs]. Playing at Beaver Stadium is so awesome. It’s definitely one of the top three things I’ve ever done. The atmosphere there is unreal. The fans are so supportive of not only Penn State football, but just Penn State in general. When it’s game day and we all get together at the stadium, we’re all there for one cause and that’s to represent Penn State. The fans really get it rocking. I think Beaver Stadium is probably the best game-day atmosphere that I’ve ever been a part of.
JM: A lot of your big performances came in bowl games. Why do you think that is? Do you get a little extra motivation from playing in those games?
CG: Honestly, I never really approached a bowl game any differently than I do any other game. I think that the extra time you get in-between a bowl game can be very beneficial. It allows you more time to study your opponent. It gives you the time necessary to make sure that you have your game plan completely down.
By the time the game gets there, you know your game plan like the back of your hand. I guess when the bright lights came on, I was able to perform. It’s a special level of focus that you have to have when playing in a big game. You have to step up for your team, and that’s something I’ve always wanted to do, and thankfully I’ve been able to perform when it mattered most to my team.
JM: It really shows. I know that we’re early in the process here, but how’s your chemistry with Jameis Winston coming along?
CG: It’s definitely growing every week. Chemistry is not something that you can rush. It’s also not something that happens overnight. It takes a lot of good moves and a lot of well-ran routes before you can get there, and it also takes some mistakes. It takes mistakes to learn from to realize okay, we can’t do that again or that I can’t run that route like that again. It’s definitely growing by each week. Not just with myself, but with the rest of the receiver core. We have so many weapons that I think it’s gonna be really tough on defenses.
JM: How did OTA’s and minicamp go? It’s obviously a transition for you, being a rookie.
CG: It’s been going great so far. We have a lot of great guys in our receiver room. I’ve said it before, but they’ve welcomed me with open arms. I thought that was pretty cool. Even this early in the process, I feel very comfortable asking anybody anything. I don’t hesitate to ask any of the older guys any questions that I may have about the offense or advice on how I should do something.
I really feel comfortable asking the older guys how I should do something that’s new to me. I know that they’re going to give me their honest answer and their honest opinion. I think that’s really cool. It’s allowed me to be more comfortable. It’s allowed me to grow every day and even on the days that aren’t my best, all the guys are right there to pick me up and tell me what I can do better, or when I do something good, they tell me specifically why that was good. It’s a great environment for me to be in.
JM: Speaking of some of those older guys in the room, has Mike Evans or DeSean Jackson had any advice for you?
CG: Not necessarily specific advice, but those are two are the major guys that are helping me make the transition. Mike has been great every day. DeSean is an open book. He’s obviously been doing this for about ten years now, and he’s seen a lot. A young star like Mike, to be able to just pick his brain, it’s definitely gonna help me a lot.
JM: Is there anything specific that receivers coach Todd Monken has you working on every single day?
CG: There’s not one thing in particular. We’re just trying to continue to grow my game and allow me to have more tools in my toolbox to implement when the time is needed. We’re all working on our individual things. For me, I wanna be the best route runner that I can be. That’s something that Coach Monken is always pushing me to be. If I do something wrong, he’s right there telling me why I did it wrong or how I need to go about doing it better. That’s what you look for in a coach; a guy that’s gonna push you to be your best.
JM: Going back to your time at Penn State, who’s the best cornerback that you ever faced?
CG: Outside of my teammates, I probably had the best match-ups with Jourdan Lewis of Michigan. By the time I started going against him, he was a veteran guy. He’s obviously a little bit of a shorter corner, but he has long arms and he’s very patient. I could tell that he had a lot of experience. Some of the things that a younger, more inexperienced guy might fall for, Jourdan wouldn’t. He’s smart about his physicality; he knew how much he could get away with [laughs]. He used that to his advantage. I always looked forward to going against him because I knew that every single play was going to be a battle.
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JM: The NFL draft community is really looking forward to watching Saquon Barkley in 2017. Is he going to do big things this season?
CG: Oh yeah [laughs]. I fully expect Saquon to take another step forward this year. That’s saying something, because he’s obviously put together two really good seasons already. I expect him to have another year just like the first two. Honestly though, I think the best thing about Saquon Barkley is that he’s one of the more humble people that you’ll ever meet. With all the talent that he has, you’ll never hear him talk about himself. He likes to shift the attention to his team. I think that’s great for a guy with as much talent as he has.
JM: Is the Penn State receiver room in good hands, even without Chris Godwin?
CG: Without a doubt. There’s not a doubt in my mind that it’s in good hands. Over the past couple of years, we’ve arguably had one of the best receiver cores from top to bottom in the country. Just because I’m not there anymore just means that there’s now room for somebody else to step up and make that role their own. I think there’s legitimately four or five guys that can take over that No. 1 receiver role. That’s the good thing about having so many capable guys; they’re all gonna push each other throughout practice. By the time the season rolls around, the whole receiver room will be ready to shine.
JM: Trace McSorley is an interesting quarterback to watch this season. What do you expect out of him? He has a chance to create some draft buzz.
CG: I expect Trace to have a better year than he had did last year, and he had a great year last year. It was obviously his first year, people didn’t really know what to expect, but Trace is a competitor. He’s not a 6-4, 230-pound quarterback, but he has a lot of heart and he’s won at every level he’s been at. I don’t really expecting anything less from Trace. I know that he’s gonna do what it takes to help Penn State win games.
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JM: Going back a little bit but sticking with quarterbacks, you played with Christian Hackenberg, as well. He might get an opportunity this year in New York. What can Jets fans expect from him?
CG: When it comes to Hack, I think fans can look forward to a guy that’s gonna be ready every week. He’s gonna keep his head in the playbook and he’s gonna know what he’s doing. I think last year was good for him to really take a year to see how everything works and to get a feel for the things around him. That year off can take a load off of your body while allowing you to mature mentally with the speed of the NFL.
There’s often times that we see a quarterback drafted in the second round and he’s thrust into the starting role, whether he’s ready or not. Hack was fortunate enough to sit and learn since his rookie season was kind of a redshirt year. If he does get the opportunity to start this season, I think Jets fans can look forward to a great quarterback.
JM: You got a front row seat to Sam Darnold in the Rose Bowl. A lot of people think he’s the No. 1 QB for the 2018 draft. What did you take away from seeing him up close and personal?
CG: Honestly, he surprised me a lot. I knew going into that game that they had a good quarterback, and they had a lot of momentum going into that game. I never had gotten a chance to actually watch him play. To see him move around the pocket the way that he was, avoiding sacks and making the throws that he was making, it was very impressive. With the talk of him being the No. 1 quarterback next year, I can see why. He’s got a lot of talent, man.
JM: What can Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans look forward to this season?
CG: Bucs fans can look forward to a lot of firepower, man. Not just from myself, but from the rest of the receiver corps and the entire offense. We’re gonna field a stout defense, as well. Obviously, we have a lot of talent on this team, but we’re excited about the hard work that we have ahead of ourselves. We’re excited about the process that it’s going to take to be great.
