Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles grilled by reporters after Chris Godwin’s horror injury with game all but over

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles is under scrutiny for his decision to leave Chris Godwin in the game before suffering a horror injury against the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night.

Godwin suffered an apparent dislocated ankle in the final minute of the Buccaneers’ 41-31 loss to the Ravens in Tampa Bay, with gruesome replays showing his leg twisted the wrong way after being tackled to the turf.

As his distraught teammates surrounded him, the 26-year-old wide receiver was eventually carted off the field with an air blast to his leg.

Considering the Bucs were trailing by 10 points with just over 50 seconds left at the time, many wondered why Bowles had left Godwin – a key member of his offense – in the game when their defeat was all but confirmed.

And the Tampa Bay coach was questioned by reporters about that controversial decision during his post-game press conference.

Godwin suffered a dislocated ankle in the final minute of the Bucs’ 41-31 loss to the Ravens

A journalist asked him: ‘Coach, you are ten minutes behind, you have no timeouts, it is less than a minute. [on the clock]then you need a score, an onside kick and another score… why is Chris Godwin in the game at that moment?’

“He’s a player, we’re trying to win the ball game,” a defiant Bowles responded. ‘We were still ten behind, we tried to get extra points and kick another offside. It just happens.’

Asked if he should have made the call to keep Godwin, Bowles said, “You can say that because he got hurt. [but] we have no doubts. We have our guys and we will play everyone we have.

“It’s a shame he got hurt and we feel bad about that, but he’s a football player and he wanted to be in the game just like Baker and everyone else wanted to be in the game.”

Another reporter then said, “Do you have a duty to protect your players from themselves, though?”

“I protect my players all the time,” the coach fired back. “It has nothing to do with why we left him in the ball game. We still had a chance to score some points and win the ball game. That happens in football.’

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT BELOW

Gruesome replays showed Godwin’s leg twisting the wrong way after he was tackled

The wide receiver was left in obvious pain as his distraught teammates surrounded him

Godwin was carted off the field after an air cushion was placed around his apparent dislocated ankle

Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield was seen hitting his helmet on the ground in frustration over the devastating injury Godwin suffered so late in the game.

After the loss, footage emerged of the Bucs receiver unable to walk at all and being taken to the trainer’s room.

Initial fears surround a dislocated ankle for Godwin, with the injury likely to end his season.

He will also be a free agent at the end of this season.

Baltimore defeated Tampa Bay 41-31, with the Ravens scoring nearly all of their points unanswered due to the dominance of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry.

The Buccaneers had already lost top wide receiver Mike Evans to a leg injury earlier in the game.