The Denver Broncos are probably one more season away from becoming legitimate Super Bowl contenders — it’s not necessarily 2026 or bust but that should be the year everything comes together perfectly.
That can’t happen if the Broncos fall flat in 2025, and missing the playoffs would have to be considered a regression after finally getting back to the postseason for the first time since 2015. The biggest part of that equation is putting some better offensive weapons around second-year quarterback and 2024 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year finalist Bo Nix.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport thinks the best way to make that happen is by signing free agent wide receiver Chris Godwin away from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, calling the 9-year NFL veteran a “perfect” fit for head coach Sean Payton’s offense.
“(The Broncos) are coming off a playoff appearance and are in solid shape relative to the cap, good enough to swing for one high-end impact player in free agency,” Davenport wrote on February 24. “That player should be another weapon for quarterback Bo Nix. Godwin’s 2024 campaign was cut short by injury, and it’s not the first serious injury of his professional career. But we’ve seen him rebound from such an issue before, and he posted three straight 1,000-yard seasons from 2021 to 2023.”
Godwin dislocated his ankle in a Week 7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens but has returned from a serious injury before. Godwin, who earned NFL All-Pro honors in 2019, tore his ACL in 2021 and returned in 2022 to have 104 receptions for 1,023 yards.
Godwin Held in High Regard by NFL Teams
That Godwin’s injury did little to hurt his value as a free agent speaks to the high esteem he’s held by other NFL teams. Without his injury, Godwin may have ended up with a contract in the range of a 4-year, $90 million deal.
Godwin was playing some of the best football of his career when he suffered his season-ending injury in Week 7 and is a plug-and-play WR1 or WR2 option for a contender — he’s also seen his market value leap up to a 3-year, $67.5 million contract in Spotrac’s latest market value projections.
“Godwin was on pace for another Godwin-like campaign in 2024 before an ankle injury derailed his season,” Spotrac’s Michael Ginnitti wrote on February 11. “Teams will have some pause when assessing the 28-year-old coming back from his second major injury, but a weak WR market will help sustain his ability to cash in.”
Premium Value on NFL Wide Receivers in 2025
The 2024 offseason saw contracts for wide receivers skyrocket thanks to a pair of deals for Dallas Cowboys All-Pro CeeDee Lamb (4 years, $136 million) and Minnesota Vikings All-Pro Justin Jefferson (4 years, $140 million), with an even larger contract likely on the way for Cincinnati Bengals superstar Ja’Marr Chase after he won the receiving triple crown in 2024.
That means another windfall for Godwin, who just played the final season of the 3-year, $60 million contract extension he signed in March 2022. Pro Football Focus has Godwin ranked No. 4 overall on its list of Top 100 NFL Free Agents in 2025.
From PFF: “Godwin has consistently displayed reliable hands, dropping fewer than 6% of catchable passes in seven of his eight NFL seasons.”
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