Five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans is back with the Bucs for his 11th season. By the time the 2024 season starts, Evans will be 31 years old. Both he and the Bucs are betting he can buck the trend of performance fall off for receivers over 30 as the two parties embark on a new two-year contract.

During his press conference on Friday, Evans spoke about his desire to continue to play for multiple seasons into the future. When asked how he felt after his 1oth season Evans said, “I just feel so good. You never know because each year feels different. I feel great. This is probably the best I have felt – year five and this year is probably the best I’ve ever felt after the season. I can just run, and I feel fine.”

Following Evans’ fifth season in the league (2019) he caught 67 of his 114 targets for 1,157 yards and eight touchdowns on the way to his third Pro Bowl at age 26.

Now at age 30, Evans credits the way he feels to the way he takes care of his body. He began using the TB12 method that former Bucs and future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady introduced him to years ago upon Brady’s arrival in Tampa Bay. Evans mentioned it was a long, hard sell by Brady.

“We talked about it for three years straight,” Evans said. “‘You’ve got to do treatment.’ He harped on it and pushed it. Even when he left, he would say, ‘Are you getting your treatment?’ He makes sure guys are staying in treatment.”

Mike Evans Had One Of His Best Seasons At Age 30, Showed No Signs Of Slowing Down

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The work that Mike Evans has put in to keep his body in peak condition certainly paid off in 2023. The future Hall of Famer noted how he was able to stay relatively injury-free thanks to an improved training regimen.

“I was healthy this year,” Evans said. “I only had the rib injury and I think I had a hamstring right before the bye. So, I didn’t miss any games. I just came out pretty fresh this year.”

Evans caught 79 of his 127 targets for 1,255 yards and 13 touchdowns. The former first-round pick saw a causation between how he felt and his production.

“This had to be my best year in YAC (yards after catch), right?” Evans said. “I should’ve had even more. That’s what I am saying. I’m trying to be the best in the league outright. I know what I can do – that I’m the best. I just have to show it consistently.”

Evans had a career-high 333 yards after catch, which surpassed his 2022 total of 227 YAC, according to Pro Football Focus. His previous best was 294 YAC in 2018.

Father Time is undefeated, but Evans’ odds for having a good 2024 season should be in good shape so he’s so focused on being in great shape physically. Since 2010, 19 receivers have followed up an age-30 season where they had at least 25 catches with an age-31 season. The average receiving performance of that population in their age-31 season was 55 catches for 728 yards, averaging 13.3 yards per reception with 3.7 touchdowns.

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Those stats match well with that group’s age-30 season averages. The year prior the group averaged 59 catches for 693 yards (11.8 yards per catch) and 4.8 touchdowns. With no real drop-off year over year in the group’s production it’s safe to say with Evans taking such great care of his body he can match his 2023 production.

But the last year of Evans’ deal may prove to be a difficult for him to continue his high level of play.

Of the aforementioned group of receivers, only two had their age-31 season in 2023 (Robert Woods and Odell Beckham Jr.). With the remaining 17, four did not play their age-32 season, and the group as a whole averaged just 40 receptions for 469 yards and 2.6 touchdowns. That’s roughly a 30% decline in production.

If that trend is applied to Evans’ 2023 season, he could be looking at a 55-catch, 879 yards, nine-touchdown campaign in 2024. But Mike Evans will be damned if his streak of 1,000-yard receiving seasons ends at 10 years.

Could Mike Evans Be The Next Larry Fitzgerald?

During his Friday press conference Mike Evans shed some light on how many more years he wants to play in the NFL – preferably in Tampa Bay.

Bucs WR Mike Evans and GM Jason Licht – Photo by: Scott Reynolds/PR

“I’ve told you all throughout the years that I train more, and I train harder in the offseason, eat better and things like that – stretching, chiropractor, the whole nine [yards]. I have it all,” Evans said. “That’s definitely helped me prolong my career and made me feel better. Hopefully I can play five-to-six more years at a high level.

“That’s been key for me. It’s helped me a lot … And I didn’t want to leave the community. I’ve made life-long relationships in the community. There are domestic violence centers that we’re a big part of, so we didn’t want to leave that. Even though we always would have probably helped, it’s cool to be close to home.”

Playing five-to-six more years would mean Evans is looking to reach his mid-thirties while still playing at a high level. There is not much precedence for that.

But there is one player whose career-path is intriguing as a model for Mike Evans joining an elite group of receivers who were able to maintain a high-level of play well past their 30th birthdays. From 2014 to 2017, Larry Fitzgerald averaged 97 receptions 1,045 yards and six touchdowns.

With 17,492 receiving yards, Fitzgerald has the NFL’s second-most receiving yardage behind the legendary Jerry Rice (22,895 yards). Evans currently ranks 33rd on the all-time list with 11,680 yards. With two more 1,000-yard seasons in Tampa Bay, Evans will crack the NFL’s Top 20. With five more seasons averaging 1,000 yards, he would be right behind Fitzgerald with over 16,000 career receiving yards.

Evans and the Bucs would certainly sign up for that level of production.

And Tampa Bay fans would as well.