Any team facing off against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers probably doesn’t want to see Mike Evans run any route, but there’s one that gave defenses fits during the 2024 season.

Evans has experience running just about every route in the route tree during his long career. He made his name early by coming down with contested deep catches, but he’s able to run anything in the short and intermediate ranges, too. That aspect of his game was appreciated by 2024 Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen, who didn’t focus on explosive plays as much and had his wide receivers finding room in space and stretching the field from sideline to sideline.

As a result of that coaching, Evans still flourished in Coen’s system — and, per Pro Football Focus, he was particularly deadly when running slant routes. Pro Football Focus went over the best receivers for each route type in 2024, and Evans came out on top when it came to slant routes. He finished the season with a grade of 95.4, beating out the Atlanta Falcons’ Drake London in second (95.0) and the Philadelphia Eagles’ AJ Brown in third (94.7).

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans reacts after a pass interference call during the second quarter. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Here’s what writer Lauren Gray had to say about Evans:

“Mike Evans generated a 15.8% target rate on slants last season, the second-highest clip in his route tree. Nearly every catch turned into a big play. He secured 16 of 18 passes for 187 yards (fourth most), with all but two catches going for first downs. Seven of his first downs came on late-down targets, where he secured each one for 92 yards. Evans hauled in two touchdown passes, recorded five gains of 15-plus yards and ranked fifth in yards gained after contact (45). The 11th-year veteran has seen 54 slant targets over the past three seasons (fifth most), earning a 94.3 PFF receiving grade on those plays (tied for third best). He has caught 45 slants for 487 yards and 36 first downs across that span, all top-three figures.”

Evans will likely continue to run slants in new offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard’s offense, as it should take quite a few queues from Coen’s work last year. That being said, the Bucs want some of those explosive plays that Evans has been able to make in the past, and his quarterback Baker Mayfield mentioned during minicamp that Tampa Bay will be looking to get a bit more vertical next year.

“We’re trying to get some more explosive [plays] in,” Mayfield said during minicamp. “Obviously, when you look at the stats — I’m not a big stats guy — but we weren’t as much down-the-field explosive. We were creating a lot of open, in the middle, and guys getting some YAC.”

The key will be to blend those two philosophies together, and that’s nothing new to Evans. He’s set to enter the final year of his current contract in 2025, and he’ll hope to earn himself some more money in the future with yet another 1,000-yard season.