Buccaneers
- Per the Athletic’s Mike Sando, Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin faces a few interesting constraints in his negotiations with the team, including the presence of teammate and Tampa Bay No. 1 WR Mike Evans who’s making $16.5 million a year.
- While Godwin can justifiably ask for much more than that given he’s actually produced more than Evans the past 16 games, Tampa Bay has the $15.3 million franchise tag, which is lower than last year because of a shrinking 2021 cap, to fall back on, per one NFL executive: “Let’s say you are Godwin and you want a certain APY. That could lead to, ‘Well, they can’t pay you more than Mike Evans and if they pay you a little more than Mike Evans, they have to tear up Mike Evans’ deal. And, oh, by the way, COVID, cash problems and you are staring at that tag.”
- Former agent and CBS Sports analyst Joel Corry writes Godwin has probably taken note of the $20 million-per-year deal Chargers WR Keenan Allen signed.
- Corry notes Buccaneers OLB Shaquil Barrett is also poised to crack $20 million per year if he can prove his 19.5 sack 2019 season wasn’t an anomaly.
- As for Buccaneers LB Lavonte David, Corry said his market should be in the $13-$15 million per year range.
- The Buccaneers announced that they will allow fans at home games starting in Week 4, “eventually” working towards 25 percent capacity.
Falcons
- Regarding Falcons’ first-round CB A.J. Terrell missing Week 3 after being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list, Vaugh McClure notes that Atlanta’s secondary is particularly thin after already ruling out DBs Kendall Sheffield (foot) and Ricardo Allen (elbow).
- Tom Pelissero reports Terrell’s positive COVID-19 test came back overnight and he did not attend the Falcons’ walkthru on Saturday.
- Pelissero adds that no one else on the Falcons tested positive and all players had their scheduled tests on Saturday morning, which they expect to have back tomorrow.
Panthers
With star RB Christian McCaffrey injured for Week 3, the team will have to rely on backup RB Mike Davis to fill in. This is no problem for Panthers’ RB coach Jeff Nixon, who was adamant that Davis would be a strong backup for the team and has had a positive relationship with Davis for several years.
“Mike really impressed me right away when I got a chance to watch his film from last year at practice and from his time spent with Seattle and Chicago,” Nixon said, via Myles Simmons of Panthers.com. “I was excited about him and knew he’d be a great compliment to Christian McCaffrey as our No. 2 running back. I was really impressed with him last week, coming in a tough situation, making some plays, and giving us a chance to come back and win the football game. The biggest that you want out of your No. 2 running back is someone that can go in and be a really good all-around back — running the ball, blocking and catching — and Mike can do all of those things. It’s his work ethic and talent. He’s performed all through training camp, all through the first couple weeks of the season.”
Nixon discussed RB Reggie Bonnafon, who has been activated from the practice squad as a potential complement to Davis.
“(Bonnafon is) a guy that’s still fairly new to the position because he played quarterback at Louisville for a couple of years before moving to running back. So he’s still kind of raw, but he has gotten better and better since training camp,” Nixon said. “He’ll be a good compliment to Mike. A lot of people are excited to see Mike get his opportunity here in the next couple of weeks. I expect him to do big things for us.”
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