Bucs Have One Of The Most Expensive WR Rooms In 2023

Whoever wins the Bucs’ starting quarterback job in 2023 — whether it’s 2021 second-round pick Kyle Trask or free agent addition Baker Mayfield — will have a strong receiving corps to throw to. And it’s a receiving corps that is highly paid, too.

Warren Sharp recently shared rankings of each NFL team’s wide receiver group from highest-paid to lowest-paid, and the collective $38.5 million that Bucs receivers are making ranks them sixth in the league.

Tampa Bay’s top three receivers make up the majority of that $38.5 million. Heading into the final year of his contract, Mike Evans carries a 2023 cap hit of $23,698,500 while Chris Godwin — thanks to a recent restructure — has a cap hit of $8,614,000. He signed a three-year, $60 million deal with the Bucs last offseason.

Russell Gage, who signed a three-year deal himself last offseason, also restructured his contract last month. He now has a 2023 cap hit of $4,430,666.

Evans, Godwin and Gage combine for nearly $37 million of that $38.5 million. Beyond them, the Bucs only have 2022 undrafted free agents Deven Thompkins and Kaylon Geiger Sr. under contract.

Bucs Still Need To Round Out Receiving Corps For 2023

Because the Bucs only have Thompkins and Geiger on the roster after their top three receivers, they’re bound to add some more to the position group this offseason. How they do so, however, remains to be seen.

The team is still cap-strapped this offseason, so any free agent wide receiver additions will have to fall in the “value signing” category. Pewter Report’s JC Allen recently named former Chiefs and Bears receiver — and Tampa native — Byron Pringle as a potential fit. Demarcus Robinson and Chris Moore were also listed as potential options.

Outside of cost-effective options in free agency, the Bucs could look to the draft in hopes of finding some more youth and speed for the receiver room. With Gage restructuring his contract to remain with Tampa Bay in 2023, it’s unlikely that the team uses a high pick on the receiver position. After all, that new draftee would be — at best — battling for the WR3 spot.

Instead, Day 3 seems to be the right spot for the Bucs to consider adding to their receiving corps. They met with several receivers at the NFL Scouting Combine last month, including Louisiana’s Michael Jefferson, Nebraska’s Trey Palmer, LSU’s Kayshon Boutte, Wake Forest’s A.T. Perry and Florida’s Justin Shorter.

Both Thompkins and Geiger were undrafted free agents and the Bucs will surely add a few more undrafted free agent receivers this year to help give the team enough bodies for training camp.

Mike Evans, Chris Godwin Need To Produce More Touchdowns

Either way, Tampa Bay’s receiving group figures to remain in the pay range it’s in now. It’s the highest-paid group in the NFC South, with the Saints (13th at $28.1 million), Panthers (29th at $11.9 million) and Falcons (30th at $10.7 million) firmly behind. Part of that is a testament to how well the Bucs did in drafting — and retaining — two top receivers in Evans (the No. 7 pick in the 2014 Draft) and Godwin (the No. 84 pick in the 2017 Draft).

One thing the Bucs will need to do is get more touchdown production from Evans and Godwin, as they are the two most expensive receivers on the team. Evans recorded just six touchdowns last season, which was a far cry from the team-record 14 TDs he had in 2021 and the 13 scores he produced for the Bucs during their Super Bowl season in 2020.

Godwin had just three touchdowns after posting six total touchdowns in 2021 before suffering a season-ending knee injury in December of that year. Evans and Godwin combined for just nine TDs in 2022 after producing 20 touchdowns in 2021.

Tampa Bay’s dynamic duo needs to get back into the upper double-digits again for the Bucs to win more than eight games in 2023.