Mike Evans To Future Bucs Starting QB: More Jump Balls, Please
February 18th, 2022
Use his height.
Mike Evans has already said he has no clue who the next Bucs quarterback will be this fall. Whoever it is, Evans does have a kind request that will make the quarterback’s job easier, Evans believes.
Will you please take advantage of Evans’ size and throw him more jump balls?
That seems to be Evans’ biggest desire — other than knowing who his next quarterback will be. In an interview with Matt Harmon of Yahoo!, Harmon asked if he thought the NFL world is finally starting to take notice that Evans may be the most versatile receiver in the game.
Need touchdowns? Evans is your guy. Need possession catches? Evans can do that. Need to burn a corner deep? Evans can take care of it — hi, Jalen Ramsey!
But Evans said there is one thing he really would like to do more: Catch jump balls.
“You know, the best guys are like 6’2″, 6 foot,” Evans began. “You know, Cooper Kupp’s a slot guy. He’s one of the best in the game right now. He’s unbelievable. I mean, we all come in different sizes.
“You know, I’m not just a jump ball guy. I’m good at jump balls. I’m really good at jump balls. I wish I got more of those, I mean, to use my size. But each year, I just try to focus on route running, and being better after the catch.”
Evans no doubt has become an all-around receiver, but he makes a helluva point.
Evans has the size. He has the basketball hops. He has the hands. He has the footwork. So why not take advantage of those rare combined qualities and go for jump balls?
Joe doesn’t think there is anything wrong with Evans’ polite request.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:04 am
Jump balls definitely in the red zone. Unless it’s like a critical down and we need the first down, I’d rather see more instances of him burning Ramsey or any other poor sap who covers him one on one. The big knock on him was his lack of yac, but now I think that’s been put to rest.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:05 am
The Glazers might need to think about trading Mike. Nobody likes a miscreant (that means a trouble-maker).
But you know who can throw great jump passes? It’s not Kyle, it’s Tebow!
Next Bucs quarterback!
You know it’s coming. Christian, no massage therapist incidents that anyone knows about, a truly high character guy. Maybe he could take Man of the Year candidate Evans and get him to ease off his diva platform of asking for jump balls.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:09 am
Yeah, one of the very mild complaints I had with Brady, was that I wished he just threw up more jump balls to Evans. You don’t need Evans to be open to catch the ball, you just put the ball where he can get it, and you should always expect he’s going to catch it or make sure it’s batted down. Again, a very mild complaint – and frankly, Brady not doing that, I think made Evans a better receiver as he had to work more on getting seperation.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:10 am
Mike should trust the coaching staff and his Quarterback. Obviously jump balls aren’t a part of the game plan and Mike shouldn’t criticize .
His new quarterback, Tebow, was a great Gator and throws a lot of jump balls, is a Christian and will appreciate the total human element of his teammates. This will lead the Bucs to new and prosperous influence in the greater Christian community.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:27 am
Swamp, even your attempts at sarcasm are lame. Stick with your other shtick. I mean at least then you sound like a toddler with tourettes which is at least mildly entertaining.
February 18th, 2022 at 1:07 am
Translation:
I’m really a lazy route runner who depends on my size to make up for that deficiency and I prefer a QB that doesn’t hold me accountable for my routes.
I guess you could say that I’m talented but I like to wing it.
Throw it up and I’ll try to get there, just don’t count on me being at a certain spot at any given time.
I do me and you do you.
I wonder where we could ever find a QB to compliment my skill set?
____________
Jason, there’s a Mr. Winsnone on line one…….
February 18th, 2022 at 1:47 am
Doosh that’s highly critical of the future Hall of famer, who Brady named as one of his top 6 receivers ever in terms of “making Tom look good.”
We should be spreading positive Christian vibes here. What would Jesus say?
February 18th, 2022 at 2:03 am
i talked about this often when there seemed to be a disconnect between mike and brady…
i said there is a lack of the balls being thrown mike’s way that he used to go up and get with jameis…
looking back, i think it was a matter of trust with brady and not wanting to risk 50/50 balls with mike and potentially pad his personal stats with ints…
his trust was built with gronk over the years so he decided gronk is the only one getting those jump balls…
oh well…water under the bridge now…
no worries mike, you’ll be seeing a lot more of those in the future, and in the back of the end zone by the goal posts as well 🙂
February 18th, 2022 at 2:25 am
Mike may be more frustrated than we know. Maybe he is reading many of the disrespectful posts from these forums and it’s affected his mental health and his competitive spirit?
Enough with the Mike criticism. It’s almost as unwarranted as criticizing a defensive coordinator who loses a game in the last 30 seconds…..or a billionaire wife who demands her husband quit his passion in his prime. Look, Todd and Mrs. Brady (her Christian name, where the wife takes the name of the man she marries) are both wonderful. They had nothing to do with the events that unfolded. Don’t question it – accept it and move on.
To Gabbert. Or Kyle!
Or TEBOW! YESSSSS!
February 18th, 2022 at 3:37 am
Swamp, you are sO SmArT and Funny!
February 18th, 2022 at 3:44 am
i would so bring tebow in here for one year of just complete and utter madness and media meyhem!
it’s not like we’d win sh!t…but it would be straight crazy – and yes we would remain america’s team – and we’d finish like 8-9 – and if tim stinks it up we just call him #Teblow
i’m all for tebow madness and one year of a hype driven season…
then for 2023 we sign one of the big boys
February 18th, 2022 at 3:50 am
please keep in mind that this post ^^^ was done at 4 am…
at 4 pm i can totally change my mind and think with logic 🙂
February 18th, 2022 at 3:52 am
He had a lot of success bailing out our previous blind QB who decided not to get Lasik in his 5 years here.
February 18th, 2022 at 3:54 am
Tebow and QB should never be uttered again in the same sentence. Or playing football, for that matter.
February 18th, 2022 at 4:02 am
Brady trusted certain guys more than others. Especially with riskier plays like jump balls. To know who is on Brady’s inner circle list, and the reasons why, be a mind reader.
February 18th, 2022 at 5:16 am
Rod Munch i agree. Seriously the only maybe complaint (a mild one as you say complaint) that i had wuth Brady is that he didnt give a few more opportunities to Evans for contested catches. I get that he was looking for the open WR but you can throw to Evans a few passes even if he is covered and give him a chance. He is good. Other than that we finally got to see how you suppose to play QB from a guy wearing our Bucs uniform. Boy we had not seen that in a while if not ever.
February 18th, 2022 at 6:00 am
Imagine Mike doing a 10 yard sideline route where he gets by the sideline and face the qb. If the qb could throw the ball in the 9-10 high range… that would be an unstoppable play. Is he watching the ball ball get interfered with.
February 18th, 2022 at 6:54 am
I remember the messiah cult claiming the former guy made mike evans good
Evans had 12 tds as a rookie catching balls from nobodies
He had 13 tds in 2020
He had 14 tds in 2021
His best years. 😂
February 18th, 2022 at 7:41 am
Just a thought, but IMO, A right handed QB Who loves to get the ball out quick
is going to start his reads on the right and center of the field and look for open
receivers if he has not already decided where he is going before the snap.
Brady relied on The threesome of Godwin ,Gronk and AB a heavily until two of the three were injured or quit on the team and made it harder to find open targets there.
Getting the ball to Evans on longer routes required more time to develop and in the Super Bowl Donovan Smith didn’t protect his blind side well enough.
February 18th, 2022 at 7:54 am
If you want jump balls…just bring Jameis back….he’s got experience with Mike……and he can tell you that the 50-50 odds lead to 30-30 TDs to intercepitions…….
February 18th, 2022 at 8:05 am
Selmon, Brooks, Sapp, Barber, EVANS. He’s right near the top of the list of all-time drafted Bucs. He has developed into a fantastic all-around WR and is certainly worthy of HoF consideration. Pls stop the hate.
February 18th, 2022 at 8:07 am
Mike does a great job, is a record setter, saw what he did in the playoffs, clutch performances.
Brady isn’t a jump ball thrower, those plays take longer to develop and work best in desperation situations. Tom was getting the ball out to the right receivers, on time.
To change his high percentage throws to jump balls isn’t going to happen. If someone is open, the ball is on the way. If Evans is covered, he isn’t going to take that extra moment to process “he’s covered, but I’ll throw it high and maybe he’ll turn around, find the ball and jump for it”.
Not the way a Brady offense is ran. If Russell Wilson was our QB, because of his scrambling and extending plays, then Mike Evans is a prime target for jump balls because Wilson will ad-lib the plays and chuck it up for Mike. Brady stuck with the script.
February 18th, 2022 at 8:24 am
Swamparse, no insults for Evan’s wife? It’s nice to see the therapy is working. Ow untie your wife and daughter so they can go plow the fields.
February 18th, 2022 at 9:34 am
Mike would be dominant in any era. Guys like Kupp are amazing with the sissified rules that we have now, but they would have been curb stomped back in the day. For me, a hallmark of a great player is a guy that you could say with no hesitation would be dominant no matter when he played. Mike, no doubt. Kupp? Lol, not a chance.
February 18th, 2022 at 10:00 am
Be careful what you wish for. Certain jump balls are okay, but QBs like Jimmie G tend to toss them on slants and crossing routes too. That is hazardous to the receiver.
Trask did risk his receivers in his limited preseason play. He has had a year to learn and should be better. Clyde C should have been working on him at every chance.
February 18th, 2022 at 10:44 am
Ya that works until it gets tipped up in the air and picked off. I kinda like the hit Evan’s in stride as he blows past Ramsey passes. What makes Kupp better? His ability to make any catch. Buczilla, I disagree Kupp is very good after the catch he is the real deal and I don’t seeing him shying away from any hit like Evan’s has in the past. Don’t get me wrong, Mike us great but Kupp is next level in route running.
February 18th, 2022 at 11:24 am
Lstfkyrslf, it’s a new age. Peace be with you. Everyone hates you, but it’s ok. Accept it, and move on.
February 18th, 2022 at 11:27 am
Yup Listnfrmafar, Kupp is great in today’s game, and far better after the catch than Mike. Is he a better catcher than Mike? Lol, no. A better route runner? You’d have a good argument with that one, but I disagree. Dude, saying that Mike shies away from hits is absurd.
Dudes like Kupp are special today because of the chuck rule, defenseless receiver rule, etc.. Mike is ten times the outside receiver that Kupp could ever dream of being. I like Kupp and he is fun to watch, but his excellence is in part due to silly rules. Mike doesn’t need any help to be great man and would be smoking dudes even worse if he played in the 60’s and 70’s, whereas Kupp would get brutalized.
February 18th, 2022 at 11:48 am
Swampares, at least I’m not a chauvinist woman hater like you. What’s the matter running out of horse face material? It’s sad there are still those in this world that still believe barefoot and pregnant is what woman are best suited for. What size turban do you wear?
Buczilla, how can you say that? So Kupp couldn’t play in the Stallworth, Swan, Reed, Branch, Moss, Pearson days? Sure he could, his route running is crazy. I doubt Evan’s could because of his size, a bigger target. Again Mike is a GREAT receiver and he has on occasion short armed some passes to avoid a big hit by a.charging safety. Kupp may have to, I don’t know haven’t watched him much just his highlights.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:24 pm
Listnfrmafar, I never said that Kupp couldn’t play back in the day, just that he would be brutalized if used the same way back then, as he is today. You are comparing Kupp to hall of famers after one crazy good year. If he keeps up his pace, I could change my mind on him, but you gotta pump the brakes on this guy man.. He would be a shadow of himself if asked to do what Mike does better than anyone else in the league.
Hehe, are you seriously saying that Mike is too big to have played back in the day? That’s cute man and I’m still giggling. Mike would freaking own the mostly smaller db’s that played in the 60’s and 70’s. Mike is the size of what would have been a huge defensive end back then and the db’s and even linebackers would be making constant “business decisions” with Mike on the field.
February 18th, 2022 at 12:43 pm
Geez, has there been a run on the pharmacies or something?!
February 18th, 2022 at 7:23 pm
Buczilla, check out Kupps stats last year.vefore he got hurt and the years before that when he came into the league. This guy is the real deal. Injuries have kept him from being the best receiver in the league.