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WR Mike Evans
Texas A&M
PROS:
-
Fills
need
o
The trade/giveaway of Mike Williams for a
sixth-round pick from the Bills created a huge need for the Buccaneers at WR,
with Vincent Jackson being the only viable starter on the roster at the moment.
I doubt that Lovie and Licht want to go into the season with Louis Murphy, Eric
Page, Chris Owusu and Russell Shepard as the top options behind No. 83.
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Size
o
Standing at 6’5”, Mike Evans will be one of the
taller receivers in the league. With that height and his long arms and big
frame, Evans has the potential to be an absolute nightmare for opposing
defensive backs.
-
Production
o
In two years of starting, Evans has produced 151
receptions, 2499 yards and 17 TDs. Pretty impressive.
CONS:
-
Possible
reach at No. 7
o
Evans is a great player, but I think it would be
hard to convince anyone that he is the seventh best player in this draft. That
statement isn’t meant to take away from Evans or his accomplishments, but I
believe he is being overvalued and mocked to the Buccaneers solely because of
the need created by Mike Williams’ departure.
-
Quickness
o
Evans size/speed combination is impressive and
can definitely frustrate defensive backs; however, while watching Evans’
YouTube highlights, I come away with the impression that his size is the
primary reason for his success and, while that may have gotten him by in the
college ranks, he may struggle in the pros. Evans is not a quick-footed
receiver who will surprise with accurate, precise & sudden route running
and I believe he’ll struggle to gain separation against NFL defensive backs.
-
College
Offense/Route Tree
o
The offense run at Texas A&M is a big
concern to me, and one of the reasons I would be hesitant to accept either
Johnny Manziel or Mike Evans as Buccaneers. There was a lot of improvisational
production between the two—you know, where “Johnny Football” leaves the pocket,
scrambles around, evading defenders for a few seconds and then heaves up a
hailmary pass to Mike Evans, who uses his size to come down with the ball—and
while that’s not Evans’ fault and he did his job by catching some tough,
contested passes, it still gives me pause. Another thing that concerns me is
the route tree that Evans was responsible for running in college, as he served
as the primary downfield threat for the Aggies.
Pairing with Vincent Jackson
PROS
-
Two very
big receivers
o
Many Buccaneer fans who imagine the pairing of
Mike Evans with Vincent Jackson think of the Alshon Jeffery/Brandon Marshall
pairing in Chicago, only bigger. It’s definitely a possibility with two
receivers standing at 6’5” and weighing over 220 pounds.
-
Dangerous
red zone combination
o
Again…two receivers. Each is 6’5” with jumping
ability. Fade route.
CONS
-
Too
similar?
o
When looking at the Jeffery/Marshall pairing, I
notice one thing beyond the receivers’ size, and that is how their styles and
strengths complement one another. While Brandon Marshall has the ability to
beat defenders deep and be a downfield threat, he makes his living as a possession-type receiver who excels at making catches in traffic and getting
yards after the catch, which his 12.7 career yards per catch eludes to. In the
Bears system, Marshall has his opportunities to go downfield, but Jeffery’s
primary responsibility in the passing game is deeper routes, not often running
routes shorter than the first down marker. With the combination of Evans and
Jackson, I see two receivers who are more similar to Alshon Jeffery’s style of
play rather than them mirroring the Bears starting tandem. Two WRs who excel at
making tough, downfield catches? Sounds much like the tandem the Bucs trotted
out during the 7-9 season of 2012-2013, with a bigger player starting across
from Vincent Jackson. While the pairing could work well, I feel like Evans’
skillset is almost too similar to that of Jackson. He could be a great
counterpart and successor to Jackson (if drafted by the Bucs and things were to
work out well), but I believe the similar strengths and weaknesses could limit
the offense to being one-dimensional in the passing game, much like 2012.
Here is the NFL.com draft profile of Mike Evans.
2 comments:
I think he would fit well. I personally love Evans in the redzone, one of those guys you can throw the corner route to in the endzone. I agree with you thinking of him being a reach at 7, but I don't think its a very big reach. When were this thin at the WR position, a little bit of a reach for a solid player is okay, IMO. While Evans doesn't have great quickness/agility, he does have some pretty decent straight line speed, he can out run some DB's. Nice blog Spenser! keep them coming I enjoy them, I might have to copy you and eventually try this myself one day!
Shayne, thanks for the feedback. I completely agree with your views of him as a red zone threat, but I have some concerns about the potential of the offense with Jackson and Evans out wide; however, if we can develop a threat that keeps defenses honest in the middle of the field, the offense could flourish.
Whatever happens, I'll root for Tampa Bay.
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