Mike Evans’ Agent Starts Free Agency Sales Job With A Bang
February 8th, 2026
Two years ago Buccaneers great Mike Evans signed a new two-year contract and talked about wanting to be a “Buc for life.”
Buccaneers Ring of honor general manager Jason Licht was smiling in lockstep with his first-ever draft pick for Tampa Bay. “Buc for life” was the catch phrase of March 2024.
Well, life has now led Evans to the end of his contract. And Evans’ agent, Deryk Gilmore, is doing his best to let the world know Evans is still a healthy superstar.
Gilmore strategically timed a message to NFL Network today, one that was read on-air by reporter Mike Garafolo on the network pregame show.
Garafolo quoted Gilmore in what felt like a dramatic reading: “Mike [Evans] started the season in great shape. Most people in the organization said he probably had the best [training] camp of everyone. He finished feeling better than he has in several seasons. I think his competitive nature leads to more football. That is my hope. Like most fans, I love watching him play!”
(Garafolo emphasized that Gilmore used a lot of exclamation points in his communications.)
So Evans wants back on the field; that seems beyond obvious.
Would Evans feel dissed if the Bucs don’t at least offer him the $23 million annually on a multi-year deal they are paying Chris Godwin?
Evans leaving Tampa Bay feels very hard to believe, but fans years ago could have said the exact same thing — with the exact same passion — about Jerry Rice, Julio Jones, Davante Adams and other legends.
Joe hopes the Bucs do the right thing and do it quickly. Baker Mayfield is confident that’s exactly what will happen.
The free agency dinner bell rings March 9 at noon. The Bucs could slap the franchise tag on Evans as early as Feb. 17.
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