The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have boasted one of the most explosive offenses in football since quarterback Baker Mayfield arrived in 2023, and the Buccaneers paying Mayfield back for it.
Whether that’s signing Mayfield to an extension after his first season or ensuring that Mike Evans and Chris Godwin stick around, Tampa Bay has been pulling out all of the stops to make Mayfield’s environment as friendly as possible.
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On that note, the Bucs just made yet another move to placate Mayfield long term, signing offensive tackle Luke Goedeke to a four-year contract extension, via NFL insider Jordan Schultz.
This comes just over a year after the Buccaneers made fellow tackle Tristan Wirfs the highest-paid offensive lineman in history with an extension of his own.
Goedeke was selected by Tampa Bay in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He played in 11 games and made eight starts during his rookie campaign, missing some time due to a foot injury. He also struggled when he was on the field.
However, in 2023, Goedeke had a breakout campaign of sorts, starting all 17 contests and showing dramatic improvement. He finished with a 72.5 overall grade at Pro Football Focus, indicating a clear upward trajectory for the 26-year-old.
Then, last season, Goedeke posted a 73.7 grade and ranked 18th among all tackles in run blocking, logging a 76.4 mark at Pro Football Focus in that category. He missed four games as a result of a concussion, though.
The fact that Goedeke has only played one full season in three years can be viewed as somewhat concerning, but there is no doubting just how good he is when he is healthy.
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The Buccaneers captured their fourth straight NFC South division title last season and have made five straight playoff appearances, thanks much in part to brilliant continuity on the part of the front office.
Handing Goedeke an extension is just the latest concrete evidence of that.
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