The Tampa Bay Buccaneers plan to activate WR Chris Godwin and LT Tristan Wirfs off the physically unable to perform list ahead of the start of the 2025 NFL campaign.
While both players will be members of the club’s 53 man roster, it remains to be seen whether they will be active for Week 1 of the season. By activating them off the list, both players would be eligible to practice with the team once the season starts. If they remained on the PUP list, they would be required to miss at least the first 4 games of the season.
Both players have been inactive throughout training camp, with Godwin having recently undergone a second procedure on his ankle to clear out some debris. Meanwhile Wirfs continues to recover from arthroscopic knee surgery which has kept him sidelined for the last several weeks.
While the team has yet to offer firm recovery timelines for their two stars, head coach Todd Bowles has indicated that both still need to work their way back into “football shape” before they can be expected to take the field. Reports out of Tampa have suggested that Godwin may begin practicing in Week 2 of the regular season, with an early October return to the lineup being a realistic goal.
The Bucs will need to start the season shorthanded in the WR department as Godwin, who signed a 3 year $66M deal with the club this offseason, won’t be available. Additionally, Jalen McMillan recently suffered a neck injury which could keep him out past the team’s Week 9 bye.
Wirfs is reportedly trending in the right direction, but remains behind Godwin in terms of when fans can expect to see him back on the field.
Tampa Bay opens their 2025 regular season against the Falcons on September 7th.
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