Andrew Buller-Russ
They say that money talks, but that isn’t always the case. We’ve heard it time and time again, that free agents tend to chase the bag, accepting the best-paying offer available, but as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers recently experienced, that isn’t always true either.
Recently, the Buccaneers found themselves negotiating with a franchise legend that they didn’t want to lose. After 12 excellent seasons in the Tampa Bay pewter, Mike Evans was a free agent, and Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht made sure to present a respectable offer.
In fact, according to Licht’s conversation with Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times, the Buccaneers actually offered Evans more money than the 49ers did. Yet, it didn’t matter, Evans still agreed to sign the three-year, $42.5 million contract offer from San Francisco, ditching Tampa Bay after 12 memorable seasons, including a Super Bowl win.
“He means everything to me, but he means everything to the entire organization. Obviously, he’s the best offensive player we’ve ever had and an even better person than he is a player. So, it’s always tough. That one was really tough. We made a significantly higher offer, and that was just the first offer. It became pretty clear that he and his family were just ready, like he said publicly, for another chapter. [Evans had] already established himself as the best player we’ve ever had on offense and 11 straight years with 1,000 yards, setting records. He won a Super Bowl. In my conversations with him, you know, we got emotional.”
Jason Licht on Mike Evans
It’s going to feel very weird to see Evans wearing a different colored red uniform on Sundays, especially after he developed such a strong reputation with the Buccaneers. Yet, no one can fault Evans for making what he felt was the best decision for him and his family. As Licht later noted, Evans found an attractive situation with the 49ers, who he described as a “very good team.”
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