Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht spoke to the media on Wednesday, and the topic of Mike Evans came up. The San Francisco 49ers were fortunate to sign Mike Evans to the deal that they did, considering the caliber of player they are getting.
When asked about losing Evans, Licht said, “That one’s really tough. We made a significantly higher offer. I don’t feel betrayed. Mike gave us everything he had for his 12 seasons here.”
You have to imagine Evans, despite his age and injury history,
could have gotten more than $14.3 million guaranteed off reputation alone. It sounds like Evans wanted to make a playoff run and was honest with the type of team Tampa Bay would be in 2026.
Licht continued: Sometimes, you’re just ready for another chapter. I don’t know if you ask the Patriots if they felt betrayed with Tom [Brady]. I don’t feel betrayed. He talked about our team; he loves this team. He loves everything about it.”
It would be bizarre if Evans had any bad things to say about the team that drafted him and the one he spent his entire career with. It’s a business, and Evans has to take care of himself the same way teams do.
Lich also mentioned the final straw wasn’t the Bucs’ 3rd-and-28 moment in a loss to Raheem Morris’s Falcons. Lich was asked if Evans left because Tampa Bay neglected to add another year to Evans’ contract the last time he signed a deal:
He knew that we had a verbal agreement that he could be here as long as he wanted. There was never any clamoring on his part to add years to it. I also don’t want to hold him hostage, either. I really don’t have any regret about it at that time.
Licht said he was “happy for Mike and happy he found a place he wants to be.” That’s an important takeaway here. Evans is at a destination he wants to be at.
Licht finished by saying, “I feel like we did everything we could. I had a lot of talks with Mike about that.”
Not that he needs it, but you always wonder whether there will be any added motivation for Evans in what effectively is another contract year, playing for a brand-new team with playoff aspirations.
