Mike Evans’ agent, Deryk Gilmore, released a statement to Pewter Report and other media outlets about the Bucs legend’s decision to leave Tampa Bay after 12 seasons in red and pewter. Evans will sign a three-year deal to leave the Buccaneers and join the San Francisco 49ers.

Official Statement on Mike Evans’ Decision

After twelve remarkable seasons in Tampa Bay, Mike Evans felt a desire to challenge himself with a new chapter in the final stage of his career. Throughout his entire career he has pushed himself to grow, compete, and evolve as a player, and this decision reflects that same mindset.

Mike has tremendous love and respect for the Buccaneers organization, the Glazer family, the coaches, his teammates, and especially the fans in Tampa Bay who have supported him since the day he was drafted. Tampa will always be home to him, and he is deeply proud of everything they accomplished together.

He also has great belief in the future of the Buccaneers’ wide receiver room. Mike has tremendous respect for Chris Godwin and believes that Jalen McMillan, Emeka Egbuka, and Tez Johnson are incredibly talented young players who will thrive as they continue to develop and take on larger roles in the offense.

At this stage of his career, Mike’s goals remain the same as they have always been — to compete for another Super Bowl, to play in an offensive system that challenges defenses, and to be in an environment where he can continue to push himself and contribute at the highest level.

Former Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: USA Today

The Buccaneers made it clear they would have loved for Mike to finish his career in Tampa and potentially become just the fourth player in franchise history to spend his entire career as a Buccaneer and ultimately walk into Canton representing the organization.

Mike Evans’ decision to leave Tampa was never about money. The Buccaneers were extremely aggressive in their pursuit and presented a very strong offer, demonstrating how much they value him and everything he has meant to the franchise.

In the end, this decision simply came down to Mike wanting a new challenge and a fresh opportunity while he still feels he has a great deal left to give the game.

Tampa Bay will always be a special place for Mike Evans, and his respect and gratitude for the organization and its fans will never change.

— Deryk Gilmore
Day 1 Sports & Entertainment

Darren Jones
Maven Sports

Evans enters 2026 with 13,052 receiving yards. Projecting even a modest 500 yards, he can reach as high as 17th on the NFL’s all-time leaderboard. With a 12th career 1,000-yard receiving season, he would jump all the way to 12th. With 2,000 yards over the next two seasons, he could reach seventh all-time, ahead of Hall of Famer Tim Brown and just behind Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez, who is in sixth.

As for the league’s all-time receiving touchdowns leaderboard, Evans is already in the top 10 with 108. He is four away from passing Gonzalez for ninth and nine away from passing Antonio Gates for eighth. If he can average eight receiving touchdowns over the next two seasons, he’ll have 124, which would put him sixth (depending on how many more touchdowns Davante Adams adds in his own pursuit of history).

All of that is at stake for Evans. That’s why the pursuit of targets was key in his free agency process. He wants to maximize his production and truly cement himself as a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer. In the process, he’d love to add a second Super Bowl ring to his resume as well.