Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield is already on record as the best receiver Mike Evans has ever played with. That includes Cleveland’s Jarvis Landry, Carolina’s DJ Moore, Los Angeles’ Cooper Kupp, and more from Mayfield’s various stops.
Does Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Dave Canales, who has coached several Pro Bowl receivers in Seattle over the years, including Tyler Lockett, DK Metcalf and Doug Baldwin, feel the same way? During Thursday’s press conference, Canales was asked if Evans was the best receiver he’s ever seen.
“I think this guy is a first-ballot Hall of Famer,” Canales said. “His career speaks for itself. The way he finds access and gets open in any situation, you’ll just have to give it to Mike.
“I don’t want to take anything away from Tyler, Doug Baldwin, DK – all great players. This is a player who puts it all together, he’s 6-foot-5, he’s that length, you’ve seen it in games. , at this point he can still run guys like crazy. He really has it all.”
Bucks WR Mike Evans – Photo courtesy of USA Today
That’s the correct answer, because Evans is truly a Hall of Fame-level receiver. Whether he gets into the Hall in Canton, Ohio on his first ballot will depend on how stellar Evans’ career is over the next few years.
Baldwin won’t be in the Hall of Fame, and Lockett and Metcalf have a long way to go before they’re even in the conversation.
At 30 years old, Evans has already NFL history He has racked up nine consecutive 1,000-yard seasons since 2014 with the Bucs, and needs just 150 yards before Sunday’s game against Carolina to reach 1,000 yards in a row. , Evans continues to rack up incredible results.
Mike Evans continues to climb up NFL receiving charts
Mike Evans is in the middle of his contract year with Tampa Bay. has already established himself as the best offensive weapon in Bucks history. Evans, the team’s all-time leading receiver, entered Week 13 against the Panthers with 737 career catches for 11,275 yards (15.3 average) and 90 touchdowns. These are all Bucs records. Evans averaged 70.8 yards per game this season and had 54 catches for 850 yards (15.7) and nine touchdowns in his first 12 games.
Evans is 39 points shy of the Bucs’ all-time leading pass kicker, Martin Gramatica (592 points). The red and white would need seven more touchdowns to make that happen.
Evans is clearly the Bucs’ offensive MVP, and Tampa Bay won’t be a better team without him in 2024. The Bucks may have to keep Evans at all costs next year. That’s especially true for the 2023 season so far.
Bucks WR Mike Evans – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
If he continues at this pace, Evans will finish the year with 11,700 receiving yards and passing yards. Hall of Famer Calvin Johnson (11,619), moving him to 33rd on the NFL’s all-time receiving yards list. Evans needs three more 1,000-yard seasons to rank among the top 10 all-time in receiving yards.
Evans is one touchdown away from passing Davante Adams (active), Isaac Bruce, Tony Dorsett, Edgerrin James, Bobby Mitchell and Ricky Watters for the 32nd-most total touchdowns (91) in NFL history. It became. He is also one game away from tying Adams (currently) and Bruce for 13th place in league history in TDs (91).
With two more receiving touchdowns, Evans will pass future Hall of Fame tight end and former teammate Rob Gronkowski for the 12th most receiving touchdowns in NFL history (92). I will do it.
