The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Mike Evans go hand in hand.
But entering the final year of his contract, that might have to change.
If Evans has another big season, he could be too expensive to keep around. The Bucs already paid Chris Godwin, and they invested a first-round pick in Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka.
“Evans is in the final year of a two-year, $41 million deal,” The Athletic’s Dan Pompei writes. “The last time he was in this position, it was apparent he and his agent were getting impatient with the Bucs. Now? He will be 32 soon but hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down. GM Jason Licht’s first draft pick in Tampa remains one of the Bucs’ greatest players ever and a leader who is highly respected in the locker room and community. The Bucs won’t want to lose him, but the team also recently signed Chris Godwin to a contract extension and used a first-round pick on Emeka Egbuka. Retaining Evans, especially at a similar price, may be difficult.”
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Evans is the greatest receiver in franchise history, and he’s Baker Mayfield’s top target.
He’s reached the 1,000-yard receiving mark in all 11 of his NFL seasons.
Losing Evans to a different uniform would be jarring, for sure.
But the Buccaneers may have been heading for that outcome, or at least understanding that it was a possibility. Hopefully for Tampa Bay’s sake, extension talks work out. It’d be odd to see Evans anywhere else.
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