The sight of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans in his new team’s uniform with the San Francisco 49ers has proved jarring to not only Buccaneers fans but to NFL fans the world over.
That’s for good reason. No player has been more associated with the Buccaneers over the last decade-plus than Evans, a 2014 1st round pick (No. 7 overall) who tied Jerry Rice for the NFL record with 11 consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons and helped lead his team to a Super Bowl win following the 2020 season.
Evans’ departure to the 49ers in free agency via a 3-year, $42.4 million contract was called out by ESPN’s Bill Barnwell as the NFL’s “Worst Offseason Move” after leaving a gaping hole at wide receiver for the Buccaneers.
Even worse for the Buccaneers was that Evans, a likely future Pro Football Hall of Famer, took time to throw his old team under the bus as he walked out the door, saying he wanted to play for a “contender with a good quarterback.”
“It’s never fun to lose franchise stalwarts,” Barnwell wrote. ” … Evans was hit by injuries in 2025, but he had one of the most efficient seasons of his career in 2024, when the future Hall of Famer averaged 2.6 yards per route run. Even worse, Evans did not sign an exorbitant deal in leaving Tampa Bay. Evans’ contract with the 49ers is really a one-year pact for $14.3 million. The Bucs are in a tight cap situation when you consider that Baker Mayfield is coming due for a raise this offseason, but those are more than fair deals for players who still project to play at a high level in 2026.”
Little Backlash Against Mike Evans for Comments
The fact that there has been little backlash to Evans leaving, or his comments thereafter, speaks as much to how beloved he was by Buccaneers fans and what a sorry state the franchise finds itself in headed into 2026.
Evans, who has approximately $155 million in career earnings, made another point to say that he didn’t want money to be a factor in picking his next team — another shot at the Buccaneers, who reportedly offered him more money to stay.
From JoeBucsFan.com in March: “As hard as it is to believe, former Bucs receiver Mike Evans is making some enemies across Buccaneers fandom … Evans talked to 49ers media today and made it very clear that he wanted out of Tampa and was seeking a better football fit.”
Bucs Head Coach Todd Bowles is Biggest Issue
It’s not hard to see the biggest issues for the Buccaneers — a lame-duck head coach in Todd Bowles.
It also may have been the biggest issue for Evans in deciding not to stay in Tampa Bay.
Before Evans left town, the most shocking decision to do with the Buccaneers this offseason was when news broke that head coach Todd Bowles would be back for a 5th season.
Bowles went from average over his first 3 seasons to downright incompetent in 2025 as the Buccaneers went 8-9 and missed the playoffs for the 1st time since 2019, and Bowles’ supposed specialty — defense — was the team’s biggest weakness once again.
Bucs Losing Future Hall of Fame WR Called NFL’s ‘Worst Offseason Move’