How Buccaneers think Baker Mayfield will take Mike Evans' departure 'personally'

Shortly after longtime Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans left the club to join the San Francisco 49ers in free agency, some suggested that he took a shot or two at his former club and at Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield. 

It's no secret that Mayfield has often been motivated to prove doubters wrong throughout his career. While speaking with reporters on Monday, Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles addressed how he expects Mayfield will react to Evans' departure. 

Mike Evans has given Baker Mayfield a new chip for his shoulder?

"Bake keeps a chip on his shoulder," Bowles explained, per the JoeBucsFan website. "He keeps several chips on his shoulder. He and Mike were very close. I don’t think he takes it personally from that standpoint. I think he takes it personally from a challenge standpoint that he can still get it done." 

In Mayfield's first two seasons with the Buccaneers, he and Evans helped the club claim division titles. A broken collarbone then limited Evans to just eight games this past campaign, while Mayfield suffered an injury to his non-throwing shoulder in Week 12. 

In the end, a Tampa Bay side that was once 6-2 ended the 2025 regular season out of the playoffs with a record of 8-9. 

Baker Mayfield will want to prove he can win without Mike Evans

"I think those are the chips that everybody are going to carry with them," Bowles added about Evans' free-agency decision. "It’s not the fact that we did lose a great one — because we did. It’s the fact that we got to prove that we can still win without the great one." 

A recent report indicated that contract talks involving Mayfield's camp and the Buccaneers could turn a bit ugly if he feels disrespected by offers presented to him. The two sides agreed to a three-year deal in March 2024, and there's currently no indication that Mayfield is close to receiving a multiyear extension to his liking this spring. 

Perhaps having an unsettled future will serve as yet another chip for one of Mayfield's shoulders through at least the start of the 2026 season.