New England reportedly was willing to pay more than Tampa Bay
Chris Godwin reportedly will stay with the Buccaneers, but it apparently wasn’t due to a lack of effort from the Patriots.
Godwin will return to Tampa Bay on a three-year, $66 million deal with $45 million guaranteed, according to multiple reports.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Patriots went after Godwin “very hard” before the wide receiver ultimately chose Tampa Bay. New England wanted to get a deal done with Godwin, Schefter said.
“The interesting part of this deal is that the New England Patriots were putting on the full-court press,” Schefter said during ESPN’s “Free Agency Countdown.” “They were prepared to offer him way more than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.”
Boston Sports Journal’s Mike Giardi echoed those sentiments and said the Patriots were “willing to go further for Godwin than Tampa.” Additionally, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport said Godwin left about $20 million on the table but did not note what team that was from.
Keep up with all the latest rumors and reports in our Patriots free agency tracker.
