Mike Evans And His Big Time YAC
October 6th, 2023
YAC it up.
Remember not that long ago, some folks used to nitpick Bucs stud receiver Mike Evans because he didn’t get any YAC (yards after catch)?
Joe sure does. And earlier this season against the Bears in Week 2, Evans made one of the best plays in the NFL this season, a 70 yard catch-and-run from Baker Mayfield.
What made the play memorable was that here was a guy who was scolded for not getting enough YAC. So what did Evans do? He caught Mayfield’s pass some 20 yards downfield and ran for 50 yards before he just ran out of gas. That piano got too big on his back.
Joe thought at the time Evans may have tweaked a hamstring because of how he gingerly tippy-toed out of bounds. Per NextGen Stats, that 50 yards of YAC is the fifth-most of any pass play through four weeks of the NFL season.
If Evans, when he returns, is able to get anything close to that kind of YAC as he did against the Bears, Evans is going to have a monster final 13 weeks to the season.
October 6th, 2023 at 9:22 am
That was also a diagonal run after the catch. Evans basically sprinted a 5k.
October 6th, 2023 at 9:26 am
On that play Evans committed a blatant offensive pass interference that wasn’t called. He needs to reduce the drops and get his hamstring right. Godwin is a more reliable and clutch WR and the offense was actually better without Evans bc they started spreading the ball around instead of force feeding Evans.
October 6th, 2023 at 9:30 am
Like most here I do not get any disrespect for ME13. Yes he had a few unfortunate drops. CG14 another great WR also went through a period of the dropsies and now his hands have returned to glue as have ME’s.
I consider ME and CG the best of all worlds. They are “possession” receivers who can still get open and have reasonsable speed.
Deven Thompkins is the true speed merchant in the WR corps and he played great at N.O. Palmer is also pretty fast and he too played very well. Both of them getting TD’s in the biggest rivalry game of the season in the hostile dome in N.O. will show them they belong and their confidence and performance will only grow.
I hope we can find a way to keep ME13! That current group of 4 is as good as any in the league! If that’s hyperbole then so be it. I’m a Bucs fan!!!
October 6th, 2023 at 9:31 am
dude literally got run down and scampered out of bounds and he is being applauded for it?
what world is this….sheez
October 6th, 2023 at 9:38 am
If sprinting YAC yards lead to pulled hammies, I would prefer that Evans stick to sideline and fade routes with no YAC. Stick to what we’re used to seeing.
October 6th, 2023 at 9:39 am
Three guys had him cornered he wasn’t going to get but another yard or two.
Unrelated, great yards after catch usually come on crossing routes, not fly patterns, like Evans usually runs
October 6th, 2023 at 9:50 am
He’s tough and constantly plays through injury. He got caught because he hurt his knee week one against the Vikings. That’s why he didn’t celebrate his TD catch ( his own words). Now his hamstring pulled because he was over-compensating for the knee injury.
Mike is tough and gritty and the best Bucs receiver in history by a mile and Mike also has dropped more balls early this year than I can remember in recent seasons. I wonder if he’s putting too much pressure on himself regarding the contract situation.
Baker has missed a few wide open receivers this year forcing the ball to Mike.. he’s also missed Mike when he was wide open a couple times. I’ll chalk it up to defensive pressure/offensive growing pains.
In any case Evans a dangerous true one when he’s healthy and focused, without his legs he’s a tough possession receiver, and when he’s really injured and gutting it out he’s a decoy to help the other receivers get open on the field.
A great football player in total! Hope he can remain healthy and finish his career in Tampa.
October 6th, 2023 at 10:55 am
Forgot about all the ex all pro wr in this reply section
October 6th, 2023 at 11:40 am
Evans is a bull in a china shop when he gets into that secondary. Dbs hit the turf trying to make a play, and you ever notice that defenders would rather pursue him than get in his way to stop him? I wish he would hold onto more passes, but when he does catch them, he has only had 4 career fumbles. Credit to Baker and Canales finding this guy early and often. I always worry about those hammies. May they remain strong and pliable for at least another 3 years. LFG!
October 6th, 2023 at 11:41 am
@PelsBuc61 – Are you joking ? The Bucs are better with Evans not on the field ?? OPI ? You sound like a AINTS fan ! Evans makes all the other WRs better and he’s been the best offensive player in team history and has not slowed down. Thats just plain crazy what you said. How about all the DPI calls that the refs Did NOT call just in the Eagles game on Evans ? Lmfao 💯 you know nothing and must have something in your eyes that is brown and smells bad
October 6th, 2023 at 11:43 am
I don’t think Evans ran out of gas. The safety had the right angle on him to make the stop prior to the endzone. He wasn’t going to get in in any case. He made the smart move stepping out of bounds and saving his body from a big hit.
October 6th, 2023 at 12:01 pm
He ran out of gas. Whe. He caught the td He couldn’t eat up to the crowd. However, that. One handed grab across the middle last week was all world!
October 6th, 2023 at 12:31 pm
Canales is calling slants to both Evan and Godwin, and Baker is hitting them in stride so they’re getting some big YAC plays. Slants give you the big YAC plays, and in the last few years Evans and Godwin ran very few slants. The Baker also hit these guys in stride and that is needed for big YAC plays. I’m looking forward for Palmer and Thompkins to be targeted on slants as they have the speed to take it to the house.
October 6th, 2023 at 1:28 pm
Some of you blow things way out of proportion. Mike Evan’s has great hands, he’s dropped 3 passes this season “3” all 3 were catchable passes but y’all make it out to be drops every time he gets thrown the ball he has 20rec for 337 yards and 3 TDs in 3 1/2 games. If you bash Mike you’re not a true Bucs fan. Probably the guy who only where’s the gear when we win.
October 6th, 2023 at 1:28 pm
LET’S TAKE A MOMENT TO APPRECIATE EVANS
I don’t think people truly appreciate Evans. Every time I read a “Baker is great” or “Canales is great” article, I wonder how many people read between the lines and see Evans is the reason for their success.
Look, Baker is still the same Baker he was the last four years. If he was on any other team, he’d be floundering. It’s the Evans effect. History doesn’t lie. Evans won Johnny a Heisman. No Evans and he was a bust. Evans got Winston 5k yards and to a Pro Bowl. No Evans and he was a bust. Evans resurrected TB12’s career, got him 5k yards, and a SB. The year before Evans, TB12 was washed. Now it’s Baker’s turn for the Evans effect. Evans is a king maker.
The 1,000 yards is what we hold onto while discussing Evans but how he makes his QBs better that truly makes him great.
October 6th, 2023 at 1:59 pm
“Baker is still the same Baker he was the last four years.”
Which year are you referring to? Last year? 2 years ago when unlike the current Browns QB Watson tried to gut it through a bad shoulder.
Or perhaps a mere three seasons ago when he went 11-5 took the sorry Browns franchise to the playoffs for the first time in decades and then topped that with a win on the road in the Playoffs and came close to beating Mahomes and the Chiefs?
Or maybe five seasons ago when he finished second only to Saquan Barkley in the balloting for ROY.
Or perhap you don’t value 11 wins and a win against the Steelers in the playoffs on the road?
October 6th, 2023 at 3:02 pm
Pelsbuc – he gets just as much if not more than he dishes out, the idea is to get away with it. ask all these holding offensive linemen. donovan smith armbars allowed chiefs to close out the jets the other night. i hate when refs blatantly ignore penalties it tends to favor the super bowl contenders; but evans gets called on it sometimes, and he gets manhandled a lot, so i’m down with evans pushing off. as long as he usually gets away with it. and as far as the offense being better without him, that’s bananas. when everyone’s covered you can throw it high to mike. he’s a golden parachute. furthermore, if it seemed the O was better without him, it’s probably because a defense can’t flip a switch on a dime and install a game plan for no evans, it takes time to adjust. more likely, the offense was successful because we have receiver depth and good blocking. i mean, evans was 3 for 3 and drew a PI penalty, so there’s no way it was ‘better’ without him. other factors man. and i LOVE godwin could see he was a steal his first preseason, so i’m not gonna blindly back up mike
October 6th, 2023 at 3:38 pm
stpetebucfan Says:
Which year are you referring to? Last year? 2 years ago when unlike the current Browns QB Watson tried to gut it through a bad shoulder.
Baker chose to play hurt. Either Ego or Self Preservation as his backup was playing quite well while he was out. Fear of being replaced is a strong motivator and choice to play hurt or his mouth cost him his job.
Watson is guaranteed more than Baker will make in his football career so why not heal. He will take the Browns farther than Baker ever could. Even without Chubbs. Baker might do well in Keebler Ads for extra Dough.
Bad Decisions. His decision to run from Police tells me he makes bad choices. His response of ‘Really’ when they bounced him off of concrete step tells me he hasn’t been held accountable much. He’s on his last shot as a starter so I certainly can see him giving it his All. Canales will make 99 % of the decisions and will hold him accountable.
October 6th, 2023 at 5:06 pm
Wow Dwayne I shall give it up to you! You are the king of the nattering nabobs
of negativity.
“Bad Decisions. His decision to run from Police tells me he makes bad choices. His response of ‘Really’ when they bounced him off of concrete step tells me he hasn’t been held accountable much.”
You bring up Baker’s college indiscretion. He was DRUNK! In college getting DRUNK nobody here has ever been drunk in college eh? That’s truly rich Duane!! He was charged with public intoxication, disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and fleeing, after he attempted to break up another altercation which drew the police.
But why did you stop there negative nellie? I’ve pointed out Baker’s immaturity in college which also resulted in a game suspension for grabbing his crotch towards another team’s bench.
Meanwhile you compare that to The NFL and the NFL Players Association reaching a settlement in the Deshaun Watson disciplinary matter, agreeing that the Cleveland Browns quarterback will serve an 11-game suspension without pay after he was accused by more than two dozen women of sexual misconduct during massage sessions.
And you talk about Baker…” tells me he hasn’t been held accountable much.” That’s truly rich. You must be a troll from another fan base…the Bucs selected Fameis Jameis Winston with the top pick in the draft!
First off season he gets busted. Buc fans know about lack of accountability!!!
It’s one thing in college…kids make mistakes…but betraying your team once you’re a professional?
You call 11-5 lucky? It was their first playoff berth since 2002, at which time Mayfield was six years old. He then went on the road to Pittsburgh the team along with the Bengals that is the Browns’ biggest rival and he beat the Steelers! It was also the Browns’ first playoff road victory in 51 years, way back in 1969.
Man Duane did you go to OU where Baker stole your girlfriend? That was horrid logic combined with an obvious grudge against Mayfield that goes far behind opinion of football ability.
Seriously what turned you into such a hater?
October 6th, 2023 at 5:25 pm
Dwane Cole, you’re delusional. I live in Cleveland and the Browns are trash for 1 reason- they traded Mayfield for a nutcase evil QB who is no good and even his team mates hate. The Browns would’ve went to the Superbowl this season had they not traded Baker and all those draft picks- but its Tampa Bay’s great fortune because now they have the chance to go to the Superbowl instead. This is no hyperbole: the AFC North will take 11-12 wins to capture, it’ll take almost as many wins to get an AFC wildcard on the other hand… and chances tge Browns finish 9-4 or better are not good at all!!! Meanwhile the Bucs have a glide path through the division and a ton of veteran leaders who know how to get it done in the playoffs.
Although I’ve never been a Brady fan, I hopped aboard the Bucs boat to root for his final seasons- and I’m lucky I did. I enjoyed the recent success and now I get to see my boy Bajer who the Browns did bad follow up Brady and get to lead this great team. Sure the offensive line is a work in progress but they have much talent, they get better every week, and they have Wirfs (who the idiot Briwns whiffed on by choosing another OT in the draft) so I’m very confident they will become a pretty good line. We got the GOAT Evans (thanks to another Browns drafting blunder) and Goodwin and a bunch of young talented recievers… and the best D in football led by Shaq Barrett, one of the best guys and best stories in football. We have a talented hard-working football team and all the players are very high character people it feels good to root for. With the connections between the Stephanski offense and Canales coaching tree, it’s a good team for former Browns fans to root for now. This was basically the team we were promised and I’m happy the Bucs are doing so great and confident for the future! So take it from someone who consciously chose to follow this team when I could’ve chosen any team- this is a good squad and a team to be proud to root for.
October 6th, 2023 at 5:31 pm
I forgot to mention Antione Winfield Jr, another player the Bucs were gifted due to another huge and insanely daft Browns drafting error- a Cleveland native and great guy who IMHO is currently the DMVP of the entire NFC! The quality of his play so far this season can not be overstated. Lots to hang our hats on with this organization at the present time! Let’s keep it up Bucs!!!
October 6th, 2023 at 5:45 pm
You losers who never played the game and want to criticize Evans. Get your panties out of your cracks.
October 6th, 2023 at 7:34 pm
ME13 heal up bro we need ya
October 7th, 2023 at 3:39 am
I am sure Mike is extatic over 50 yards of YAC! He himself has stated that i was something he wanted to improve on. Good for you Mike!
Some here would find fault with a winning Lotto ticket.
Geez!
Go Bucs!
October 7th, 2023 at 9:39 am
Take a closer look at that long play and you’ll see the DB run into Evans and they bounce off each other – with a little shove from Mike – but it was the collision imo as to why there was no flag.
Mike’s a dog!
October 7th, 2023 at 9:47 am
Daniel Dream – welcome buddy, and great comments!
October 7th, 2023 at 10:40 am
The Evans haters are the absolute dumbest of the dumb.
Simple as that.