How impactful will Mike Evans’ return be for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

Yahoo Fantasy’s Matt Harmon and Nate Tice discuss how impactful Mike Evans will be when he returns to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Hear the full conversation on the “Yahoo Fantasy Forecast” podcast – and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen.

Video Transcript

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We might actually get a fully stocked Tampa Bay.

Buccaneers offense here with, I think, the receiver corps they were originally using Planning to have at this point in the season.

All’s well that ends well, apparently, yeah, they’re just standing a right guard, Essentially, at this point in time, but at one point, they’re missing, It felt like every starter, except Baker Mayfield.

I feel like every spot has had some shifting, some moving where it hasn’t been the same face.

For all you know, 1,213 weeks, 13 weeks, I should say.

Um, but no, it is.

This is what you want to see.

This is an offense so much, So many of us had optimism about it.

I think it was a consensus or unanimous top 10.

Offense is even higher for some people, because one is the strength of the offensive line, which has been slowly getting healthier, and it’s now finally more or less fully operational, You know, the Cody Mock is.

Gone; it has been gone for a while now.

But the Mike Evans thing is huge, because when Chris Godwin has come back, Which is, of course, a key component; he is definitely a half-step slower.

Um, just eye test, anecdotally, he, I mean, that makes sense.

I’m not shocked, to put it that way.

Uh, but no.

But Mike Evans, though, has been more of a no- to say I underrated him.

But more with Baker, and how Baker likes to play, attacking outside, and giving his guys Chances.

That’s where I’m like, oh yeah, you really do.

Miss Mike Evans, as opposed to, you know, the screen game has been knocked down, The screen game is less effective now.

WeIve talked about that a couple times.

Recent shows on Football 301.

But I do think Mike Evans and that winning those isolated matchups.

That’s really what’s been missing in this offense.

There are a lot of guys who can run Outbreakers.

Theres some fun stuff in the middle that they can do.

But those vertical throwsthat’s what’s been missing in this offense, And that’s the Mike Evans special.

Uh, it’s just a safety net of some sort especially for Baker Mayfield.

For Ibuka specifically, again, it’s a guy that was averaging 89 yards per game in the first five Weeks of the season passed by now.

Since then, 49 yards per game gained.

And I think this sort of, this sort of happens, right, Nate?

Where you get a receiver room that is super banged up, and it’s the Ibuka, Sterling Shepard, Tez Johnson show and for a while, it’s like, Well, look, they’re getting away with it.

They’re getting away with it.

And then, as the weeks go on.

There are diminishing returns here.

I think the biggest thing for me is that Because the other two guys are 142-pound Tez Johnson and Sterling Shepard, You know, a bajillion years into his career as a slot-only player, Ibuka basically has to play that ex-receiver position.

And I think its nice to see that he can win there, but, And his slot rate is actually only 21% the last two weeks with Chris Godwin, because he’s also a Slot player.

Like he doesn’t really solve this problem.

Them.

So, I think it’s nice to see.

That he can win there, but we probably don’t want him there on a 75.

80% basis.

And now, it’s the receiver room that we should originally have.

Evans at X; Ibuka is the movement Z, and then Chris Goddard is that power slot.

And I think that’s the best use of all these guys together.

How impactful will Mike Evans’ return be for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

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