What can the Buccaneers expect to pay Mike Evans if they give him an extension this offseaon?
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers kick off their training camp in less than a week. That means real football is almost back, and it can’t come soon enough. Tampa Bay is in the midst of preparing to defend their NFC South title, which the team has controlled for the past four seasons. It’s been another offseason of upheaval at offensive coordinator, with Liam Cohen departing to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Josh Grizzard taking the reins.
While the team is still reeling from the news of Tristan Wirfs’ surgery and subsequent absence from the start of the season, there are other roster and contract matters to attend to. One of the biggest remaining questions is about the future of star wide receiver Mike Evans. Now entering the final year of his contract with a hefty $25.4 million cap hit (second-largest on the team behind only Baker Mayfield), it could make a lot of sense for general manager Jason Licht to consider an extension.
That’s all clouded a bit by the selection of wide receiver Emeka Egbuka in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft and the recent extension for Chris Godwin. That would seem to suggest that Evans isn’t in Tampa Bay’s future plans, which might come as a shock to many. Evans has been the quite literal model of consistency for a top NFL receiver, notching 11 straight 1000-plus-yard seasons and six years of double-digit receiving touchdowns. He’s shown outstanding chemistry with Baker Mayfield and has been a stalwart in one of the NFL’s best passing attacks.
The other side of the coin is that Evans missed three games due to injury in 2024, and is entering his age 32 season, a time historically when many receivers begin to decline physically. He produced the second-lowest yardage total of his career last season (1004) and the lowest yards per reception mark (13.6).
There’s no easy way to move on from Mike Evans after this season, as he will cost the Bucs $13 million in dead cap due to void years if he’s allowed to walk in free agency. The only way to avoid that dead cap is to keep it rolling with another extension. Will the Bucs consider it? Let’s take a look at a potential extension to see how feasible it is.
What would the numbers for an extension for Mike Evans contract look like?
Mike Evans is one of the most famous wide receivers in the NFL, and that will undoubtedly play into his extension talks. Even if he isn’t at peak physical performance anymore, he’s still a WR1 with a ton of production and consistency to his name. However, given his age and the injury in 2024, it’s doubtful he’ll be looking at top-of-the-market money.
At this stage, I see Mike Evans contract comps in players like D.J. Moore, DeVonta Smith, and Nico Collins. D.J. Moore leads that group with $27.5 million APY and 39.7% guaranteed. DeVonta Smith comes in just behind at $25 million APY and 45.3% guaranteed. Nico Collins is on the low-end with $24.25 million APY and 44.1% guaranteed.
While I think you could make an argument that all three of those players are better long-term options than Evans at this stage, all three of those players also signed their deals in 2024. The cap went up significantly this year, and with it, so did the top-end receiver contracts.
Using those contracts as a starting point, here’s my projection for a potential Mike Evans extension:
Mike Evans projected contract extension: 2 years, $50.5M ($25.25M APY), $25.25M guaranteed, $15M signing bonus
This contract would give Evans a small raise commensurate with the salary cap increase and slot him in as the 13th-highest paid wide receiver in the NFL. Evans would come in just below Moore’s APY, but beat his guarantees with 50%. He’d come in just above Smith and Collins.
That’s a lot of money for a receiver who will be entering his age 33 season in 2026, the first year of the new deal. But given Evans’ history, talent, and consistency, I think this is where the market will value him. There are plenty of receiver-needy teams that would be happy to pay him if he hits free agency next offseason, particularly if he keeps the 1,000-yard streak alive.
That being said, I’m still not sure if the Bucs are the team that will pay him. Tampa Bay is already paying Chris Godwin $22 million APY and has a pair of young, interesting (and cheap) options in Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan waiting in the wings. Given those moves and the estimated cost of this extension, the writing may be on the wall for 2025 being Evans’ final season in Tampa Bay.
What are your thoughts on this potential extension for Mike Evans? Are you in favor of trying to keep Evans through the end of his career, or allowing him to test free agency in 2026? What kind of contract would you offer Evans?