Godwin held to one catch as offense falters
Eduardo Encina, Tampa Bay Times, published 10 December 2018

Chris Godwin had arguably his best game of the season last week against Carolina. And with DeSean Jackson sidelined for the second straight week with a thumb injury, the Bucs planned to make Godwin a big part of their offense in Sunday's game against the Saints. But Godwin was held to just one catch on 10 targets in the Bucs' 28-14 loss, marking the fewest receptions he's had this season.

He had a promising matchup against Saints cornerback Eli Apple, who had allowed 15 receptions on 20 targets over the previous two weeks. And while Apple matched up against Godwin, the Bucs receiver also drew cornerback Marshon Lattimore in man coverage.

But the Bucs didn't help themselves, as quarterback Jameis Winston overthrew Godwin twice on deep routes in which he had drawn separation. Both overthrows were on first-down plays.

"We missed him a couple times, and he had to leave his feet for a couple catches," Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter said. "But, they played tight coverage on all of our guys all day. They had their guys right up on us, and we anticipated — that's how they play. They are an aggressive defense, and that's why they're ranked where they are on defense."

Godwin's only catch of the day came in the second quarter, a 13-yard completion from Winston on a third-and-8. Godwin fumbled the ball, stripped by Lattimore, but it was recovered by Bucs tight end Cameron Brate.

Godwin was coming off a 101-yard receiving day last week against the Panthers, a game in which he averaged a season-high 20.2 yards per reception. In that game, in which he was starting for Jackson, he also caught his fifth touchdown pass of the season, his first since Week 6 in Atlanta.

Winston spread the ball to eight different receivers, but none had more than four catches on the day. Mike Evans led the team with 86 receiving yards, but 36 of those came on a deep ball he caught on the game's first drive.