Bucs’ Chris Godwin Wasn’t at Fault on Failed Hail Mary, Says Ex-NFL WR

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver appeared to have a chance to score on the final play of “Thursday Night Football” against the Buffalo Bills.

The Buccaneers lost to the Bills on Thursday night, but Tampa Bay had a chance to squeak out a win by converting a Hail Mary on the game’s final play. However, Baker Mayfield’s final throw fell to the ground as time expired, sealing Tampa Bay’s fourth loss of the season, 24-18.

The Hail Mary had a better chance to succeed than most, as no player appeared to touch the football before it reached the ground. In fact, Bucs wide receiver Chris Godwin appeared to have a chance to catch the ball if he had turned his head around a split second earlier.

Although some observers blamed Godwin for the incompletion, former NFL wide receiver Donté Stallworth believes the criticism isn’t fair. Stallworth explained that Godwin’s job on the play likely was to react to a tipped ball, not catch the ball directly from Mayfield, which is probably why he wasn’t looking for the ball until the last possible moment.

Godwin’s job on this play is *not to look back for the ball, but to be in position while facing the jumper to catch a tipped ball. as Godwin is fighting for position in front of Otton awaiting the “front rebound” Otton is being boxed out by two defenders.

— Donté Stallworth (@DonteStallworth) October 27, 2023

a last resort, Godwin breaks away from his job description & looks up to track the ball. by the time he does, the dark ball in a night sky is coming down fast and he’s unable to track it that quickly. and to be fair probably no one could have tracked it in a fraction of a second

— Donté Stallworth (@DonteStallworth) October 27, 2023

“I know it looks bad but that’s not his fault at all, the credit goes to the Bills secondary for executing the defense of the Hail Mary perfectly,” Stallworth wrote Friday on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

Godwin ended Thursday’s game with five catches for 54 yards and one touchdown. Tampa Bay trailed by 14 points in the final minutes of the game but rallied with a touchdown and two-point conversion with 2:40 left. Unfortunately for the Bucs, their attempt at a 55-yard Hail Mary fizzled as time expired.