Mike Evans was a guest on “Cold As Balls,” the hit athlete interview series, this week with Kevin Hart. Evans stopped by the cold tubs for an in-depth interview with Hart that highlighted his career journey, his consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season streak and thoughts on playing with different quarterbacks throughout his tenure in Tampa Bay.
Evans is coming off another prolific season with the Buccaneers in which he cemented his place atop receiver record books. In 2024, Evans extended his historic streak of 1,000-yard receiving seasons to 11 – every season of his illustrious career – finishing with 74 receptions for 1,004 yards and 11 touchdowns. In the process, he tied Pro Football Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in NFL history (11) and surpassed Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss (10) for the second-most total 1,000-yard seasons in league annals, trailing only Rice (14). It marked Evans’ sixth season with 1,000-plus receiving yards and 10-plus receiving touchdowns – the fifth-most such seasons in NFL history, trailing only Pro Football Hall of Famers Rice (9), Marvin Harrison (8), Moss (8) and Terrell Owens (8).
He has entrenched his place in league lore and will one day be enshrined in Canton. In March of 2024, Evans signed a two-year contract extension with the Buccaneers. He is Tampa Bay’s all-time leader in receptions, receiving yards, touchdown receptions, total touchdowns and 100-yard receiving games. On “Cold As Balls,” Evans elaborated on his decision to continue playing in the Bay with Baker Mayfield at the helm.
“Huge impact. Huge! He’s a big reason why I came back,” Evans stated. “The energy he’s brought to Tampa after Tom [Brady], that’s a huge act to follow and I think he’s done an unbelievable job winning two division championships and making it to the postseason. Tampa is in great hands with Baker and I’m sure he’ll play much longer than I will, and I look forward to a great season this year and competing for a Super Bowl.”
Phase III of the offseason workout program, including Organized Team Activities, is underway at the AdventHealth Training Center and Evans is back in action on the grass, poised for another record-shattering year.
During Phase Three of the offseason workout program, teams are permitted to hold up to 10 “organized team activities,” or OTAs. There is no live contact allowed during OTAs; however, teams can conduct offense-vs.-defense drills, 11-on-11, 9-on-7 and 7-on-7. This phase concludes with a highly anticipated three-day minicamp that is mandatory for all veteran players to attend.
While the Buccaneers have typically split 10 OTA practices across three weeks, this year they will hold eight of those workouts over a two-week span. The first iteration runs from Tuesday-Friday, May 27-30, and the second set runs from Monday-Thursday, June 2-5. As is customary, the final minicamp will cover the middle of the second week of June.
