Buccaneers' Mike Evans talks about staying in Tampa Bay

"I've been on the record saying how much I love this place, and how much I want to be here.  Not a lot of guys finish with one team.  That would be amazing if I get to do that.  But we'll see.  I'm still trying to get over this loss."

Evans showed he's still worth buying into

It was a tremendous performance from Evans in the loss.  He had 7 catches for 146 yards (a career best mark in the postseason) and a touchdown.  He ended up with 1255 yards and 13 touchdowns on 79 catches in the regular season. 

So now the Jason Licht and the Glazers will have to decide how much to commit to their franchise wide receiver.  Those talks stalled before the deadline in August to reach a new long-term deal.  With Evans turning 30 that same month, it's reasonable to wonder if the Bucs' front office was worried about a potential decline.  

That concern should be assuaged at this point, as Evans once again proved his worth as one of the premier receivers in the NFL.  He doesn't show any signs of slowing down either. 

There should be room to work a deal

So what does that mean as far as dollars?  According to A to Z Sports cap experts Josh Queipo and Keyl DeDimincantanio, Evans should command a contract not far from what he was seeking before the season. 

Evans attempted to get a contract extension before the 2023 season kicked off. He reportedly wanted a deal in the neighborhood of Cooper Kupp’s three-year $80.1 million deal. With plenty of indicators that Evans was declining, the Bucs opted to let him play out the final year of his deal. Evans proceeded to put up his best season in six years. The gambit will pay off for Evans, who will get his wish of approaching (although not exceeding) Kupp’s deal.

Evans ranked top-10 in receiving yards and yards per route run and top-15 in yards per catch and average depth of target while leading the league in receiving touchdowns. Evans is able to act as an ‘X’ receiver volume target while simultaneously still operating as one of the best deep targets in the NFL. An underrated route runner, he was able to display those skills better in 2023 operating in offensive coordinator Dave Canales’ system while setting a career-high in yards after catch.

At 31-years-old, Evans won’t be able to secure a deal of more than three years, but he will be able to maximize his per-year compensation, moving into a tie with A.J. Brown for the fourth-highest APY among wide receivers.

Franchise Tag Likelihood: Low
3 yrs $75.0M, $25.0M APY, $55M GTD
Year One Cap Hit: $11.0 million

While the Bucs have a lot of free agents to take care of this offseason, with Evans, Baker Mayfield, Antoine Winfield, Jr., and Lavonte David being the biggest names, there should be room to be able to make a deal with all of them.  The Buccaneers have over $47 million in cap space per OverTheCap.com, and Licht should be able to structure new deals to account for the space they have this year and take advantage of a higher cap in future years. 

There's something to be said for legacy and longevity with a franchise.  Fans buy into some players almost as much as they buy into the team.  Evans is a Buccaneer at heart.  

Now it's time for the Licht and the Glazers to make him one for life.