“Passing Of The Torch”
May 6th, 2026
Future Chief Executive.
Mike Evans is gone. He’s done. And there’s not a damn thing you, Joe or Team Glazer can do about it.
Evans did not want to be with the Bucs. He’d rather take a pay cut and fly to Australia and back, even though he hates domestic flights, just to get away from the Bucs.
Joe’s not an Evans hater. Hardly. The exact opposite. And Joe thinks the Bucs are going to miss him in so many ways, not just his production on the field. But that’s where Bucs receiver Emeka Egbuka said the Bucs’ wide receiver room is disciplined enough to weather the storm.
Evans will be missed, Egbuka told Kay Adams yesterday on “Up and Adams,” seen on FanDuel TV.
“Obviously, I think there’s a passing of a torch and it needs to be received by someone,” Egbuka said of Evans leaving.
Egbuka gave Bucs suits and Team Glazer a shoutout for preparing the team for this day. Bucs receivers have the discipline and mentality to rally, Ebuka thinks.
“I think that our management, you know our GM, our owners and everything like that, they’ve done a great job of bringing guys in who are up to the task,” Egbuka said. “So, you know, obviously, they drafted me last year. But we have Chris Godwin. We have Jalen McMillan, and we have a bunch of guys who are really ready to make an impact.”
Egbuka added the Bucs plan to welcome rookie third-round pick receiver Ted Hurst the same way Evans welcomed Godwin back in the day, and McMillan and Egbuka recently.
“We’re really excited to see what [Hurst] can do,” Egbuka said. “But obviously, you know, we’re feeling the effects of Mike being gone. He’s so loved within the building, within the Tampa community.
“It’s nothing but love for him. There’s no hard feelings or anything. And we all believe he’s going to do amazing things in San Francisco. But yeah, there is a little bit of a passing of a torch and a handoff, and I think everybody in our room is up to the task.”
Adams asked Egbuka if he thinks he can fill Evans’ void and become a team leader. Egbuka said yeah, because his fourth-grade teacher told him he would be president someday.
Soif someone thought he had the mental discipline and character to be president, Egbuka reasons, then he can surely handle a wide receiver room.
“There’s a passing of the torch, and it needs to be received by someone… [Leadership] is something that’s always come naturally to me.”
Bucs WR Emeka Egbuka on stepping up after Mike Evans’ departure@heykayadams | @Buccaneers pic.twitter.com/686IFppMqi
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) May 5, 2026
May 6th, 2026 at 9:15 am
EE, Baker, CG and Wirfs…They have plenty of leadership on offense.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:16 am
I think this season we will be good, between the upgrade on defensive edge and a solid linebacker I am high on this team this season if we can stay healthy.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:19 am
I’m most curious about the wide receiver room now. It’s definitely going to be less predictable.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:27 am
3-28
and two seasons in a row with dismal losing STREAKS!
Absence of strong leadership from the HC and above!
May 6th, 2026 at 9:30 am
Leadership doesn’t win games, players making plays wins football games.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:31 am
They were a pretty weak group last season
They definitely wasn’t one of the best WR rooms
In fact they were one of the league worst WR group
May 6th, 2026 at 9:31 am
Godwin is the leader. If he stays healthy, I look for 80 and 1200. Evans used to say we don’t have a 1, we have a 1 A and 1B.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:38 am
Folks still crying about Bowles lol.. let the season play out! He’s gotten another chance to right the ship. If he doesn’t we all know he’s gone. A new head coach doesn’t automatically make things better. With a new head coach they bring in their guys and there would be a lot of turnover so we may not have the team we have now. Go Bucs!
May 6th, 2026 at 9:40 am
Man, Kay is so hot!!! If it wasn’t for that………….
May 6th, 2026 at 9:40 am
Health is the biggest factor for the WR room. Hope Godwin can make it through the season unhurt. Oh and bring back Shepard as extra insurance.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:48 am
Eric Rivers is better than Sterling Shephard minus the veteran leadership.
I think we need to bite the bullet totally now that Evans is gone.
Let’s see what these guys can do.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:54 am
I really like Egbuka, but that 4th grade teacher quote was totally lame. 😒
May 6th, 2026 at 9:54 am
I have higher hopes for
Chris Sills
Eric Rivers
Ted Hurst
Than l have for the trash, we had last season
May 6th, 2026 at 9:55 am
Sterling Shepard is, and has been replaceable. No need to call him off the couch this season, let him go be a husband and a dad.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:56 am
Our defense will have to get us into the playoffs
I have ZERO confidence in the offense
They need to overhaul the offense with new players
May 6th, 2026 at 10:15 am
“ Bucs receivers have the discipline and mentality to rally, Egbuka thinks. “
Yep. Sure demonstrated that last year, eh, Tired Legs?
May 6th, 2026 at 10:20 am
Ehh, Mike lost my support when he directly trashed Bucs fans. He could have kept his mouth shut and been professional, but he didn’t and gets zero support from this Tampa native. I don’t care how long you were with the team – it’s called class. When Jerry left the 9ers, he was professional about it – maybe be more like your idol Mike.
Good riddance, he was a cancer on this team since Mayfield took over – all he cared about was touches and his yards. Not gonna miss him throwing hissy fits in the sidelines when he’s not targeted. Good luck with the substation
May 6th, 2026 at 10:26 am
I don’t think Lakeland even saw the 2024 season. We are heading for more of the same with everybody healthy.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:32 am
I was never very impressed with ME13’s leadership, and I think CG is a good leader for the WR room. The WR room will be fine – my least concern for the Bucs this year.
With Bain, Trotter, and Scott getting many snaps this year, I’m concerned about them starting the season fast AND hitting the rookie wall at the end of the season. The vets and S&C staff need to really work with the rookies to minimize the rookie wall.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:39 am
If the Bucs Oline can stay healthy this will be in the top ten offense easily. I expect the WR’s to get lots of yardage between the 20’s. Robinson is a good OC and hopefully he will design plays that help the WR’s and TE’s in the red zone where the offense struggles. Don’t care what any of you say, bring Shep back as insurance. lol.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:44 am
Emeka Egbuka is a class act. Kay Adams is all that. The article was top notch. As long as Baker and this offense stays healthy we’re fine. And you guys knocking Shep can shove it up where the sun don’t shine. He may not be good enough for a roster spot this year, but with our young receivers he would be far more a plus than a minus in that group.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:50 am
“Robinson is a good OC and hopefully he will design plays that help the WR’s and TE’s in the red zone where the offense struggles”
None of this comes about without consistency and efficiency from the pocket, especially not for just 2-4 games out of 17 but week in and week out.
“Don’t care what any of you say, bring Shep back as insurance. lol.”
Man, Shep needs to go join The Arena or start a podcast or car pool for the kids, he’s done in the NFL.
Hurst might make it so Tez will be fighting to be activated on game days
May 6th, 2026 at 10:51 am
Mike could not waste another season under the Bowles movement.
The home Atlanta game had to be the deciding moment he’d seen enough.
When the Glazers chose to stay the course of failure, Mike packed his gear.
2026 is just a new year with the same problems.
That problem: Todd Bowles
May 6th, 2026 at 10:57 am
Not concerned Joe. I hear your bellyaching and you deff have merit. I mean really who loses a HOF weapon and gets better shoot be lost 2. Here’s the truth tho. And I’m a huge ME13 fan but the hard truth is he’s aging. No one knows not even Mike himself how long he can keep dominating. Lot of miles on them legs. His best years are behind him. I wanted to keep him. With the Bucs tho he didn’t have to be the star anymore. Look at the WR room it’s in great shape. All those guys have produced except hurst the rook. Godwin/jalen/EE are all starting WR. Throw in Tez and hurst we have weapons at RB and TE. Only one rock to go around. Shoot just Godwin coming back strong late last season is huge. He was balling out better than ME13 in 24 before the ankle injury. Stop your bellyaching JOE. Lol
May 6th, 2026 at 10:57 am
Tez Johnson is the secret sauce to the WR position this year.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:03 am
You know who has long arms?
Emeka Egbuka!
May 6th, 2026 at 11:24 am
There used to be something called team loyalty until big money took over. Thank you Lavonte, Ronde and others for being the rare breed to stick around. I look back with great fondness to the days of the Steelers dynasty of the 70s when they built a dynamo dynasty and kept their great crew together. Sayonara Mike sorry you didn’t choose to be one of our rare breeds.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:26 am
ME13 wanted the ball more. It is as simple as that. With a very talented wide receiver group, he knew that wouldn’t be the case in Tampa.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:29 am
There’s no denying the talent of the WR group.
You can question the ability of two of them to stay healthy. Those two have a style of play that lends itself to missed games.
Mikes going to be a loss but this does allow for others to step up and grow into starter roles.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:31 am
Jason Licht drafted Egbuka and Tez last year. Egbuka is a knockout punch for this year, and Tez looked very promising in his rookie year…not great, but good. He certainly will come into his second year improved.
In 2024, he drafted McMillan…who is now competing for a starter role and looked good his second year.
Players rookie years can be rough, but if they play, they take a lot of experience into their second off season and learn where they need to improve. The good ones work on doing just that.
And, of course, in 2026, he drafted Ted Hurst, who is the tall target and a red zone threat.
On top of that, we have Godwin, who came back from injury and looked healed up. Will be even more so over this off season.
I think Licht has done an excellent job with the WRs. Even in 2023, when he drafted Trey. Good depth.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:34 am
“ME13 wanted the ball more. It is as simple as that. With a very talented wide receiver group, he knew that wouldn’t be the case in Tampa.”
So he went to San Francisco to share the ball with Kittle, McCaffery, Christian Kirk, Ricky Persall, De’zauhn Stribling & Demarcus Robinson?
Sounds like you’re making things up in place of there not being a concrete reason straight from Evans himself.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:41 am
SB~LV 🏈 Says:
“3-28
and two seasons in a row with dismal losing STREAKS!”
You think 3-28 is an insult?
Last year was a horrible year, but not because of Baker. He played with 3 injuries to the best that was possible, especially sine his throwing shoulder was injured.
Yes, our OC should have pulled him with the first injury, and Bowles should have insisted…but hind-sight is always 20-20. They had no way of knowing if Bridgewater could not do worse.
Me? I would have sat Baker through at least 2-3 games regardless…but he would have fought it because he knew who was behind him. He didn’t want Teddy causing more injuries to his WRs.
Last year was a fluke. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong. With three injuries, our QB was going to throw more picks. (Those three injuries were both shoulders and his ribs)
Defense did not have the talent to save the season. Not anyone’s fault. Jason wisely built around Baker first.
But the past is the past. The whole team is healed up…rested. Preparing for the off season. Jason addressed the defense. And did a great job of it.
3-28 is no longer a factor.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:43 am
Gipper Says:
“ME13 wanted the ball more. It is as simple as that. With a very talented wide receiver group, he knew that wouldn’t be the case in Tampa.”
Nailed it.
He knew he wasn’t getting his 1,000 yards last year because of his own injury. His streak was broken. It all had him frustrated. And 3-28 would not have happened if not for the drops before hand.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:18 pm
Out with the old, in with the new. It has always been thus. Most fans lament the loss of old time favorites. I welcome the change.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:21 pm
Hurst is gonna find it awfully tough sledding in such a huge step up in competition. I don’t wanna hear about any of this “Senior Bowl”/“Blue-Grey Game” BS, either. It’s a friggin’ semi “All-Star” game with A LOT of nice college/fringe NFL players (that I stopped watching prob a couple of decades ago). There are always WR’s in that game who look pretty good, that nobody has ever heard of before, and never heard from again. It’s usually a pretty ROUGH lookin game to begin with, with very poor QB play, timing, and ‘defensive’ players out there, just trying to stand out and make a name for themselves. It’s usually BAD Football, that has become unwatchable. Like most ALL “all-star” games. It is what it is.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:26 pm
Hurst is gonna find it awfully tough sledding in such a huge step up in competition. I don’t wanna hear about any of this “Senior Bowl”/“Blue-Grey Game” BS, either. It’s a friggin’ semi “All-Star” game with A LOT of nice college/fringe NFL players (that I stopped watching prob a couple of decades ago). There are always WR’s in that game who look pretty good, that nobody had ever heard of before, and then never heard from again. It’s usually a pretty ROUGH lookin game to begin with, with very poor QB play, timing, and ‘defensive’ players out there, just trying to stand out and make a name for themselves. It’s usually BAD Football, that has become unwatchable. Just like ALL “All-Star” Games nowadays. It is what it is.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:40 pm
I just pulled up the Senior Bowl rosters from this past Senior Bowl. There were 6 players on there from Arkansas… SIX. I mean, did they even win 2-GAMES last season!? LoL. Outside of the QB’s, there might’ve been just a ‘handful’ of others, that I have even HEARD OF Lmao. And, I watch almost EVERY college football game with my DVR. Literally. Beginning with GameDay and SEC Nation, until after Midnight. EVERY. Single. Saturday.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:41 pm
still have too many NICE GUYS on this team….especially the offense!!!
Luke is the only player on offense that could start, finish and win a bar fight lol…everyone else would rather de-escalate the situation lol
GO BUCS!!!!
May 6th, 2026 at 12:44 pm
Well, in “Reality” this EE has snot on his nose and the “my 4th grade teacher told me I’m a shoe in for president” IS LAME.
Chris Godwin IS the LEADER of the WR locker room. Phhss. Please!
As I recall (very clearly) our new draft pick last year FELL APART (2025) And as I recall Very Clearly our (2024) WR choice “McMillian” TOOK OVER at the end of 2024 and INFACT lead the team in touchdowns and pretty much ALL THINGS in the receiving department by the end of 2024. But then…. Tracy Ullman.
The Only Reason McMillian didn’t Blow Up even bigger in 2025 is because Tracy Ullman SUCKS as a QB like he Always did, BUT WORSE than anybody could have predicted EXCEPT the geniuses that WERE right there and KNEW BETTER! However they ARE ACTUALLY SO BAD at their jobs that winning formulas and Protecting the ONLY ASSET LEFT, Wasn’t what was important to the Self Concerned! Just MORE EVIDENCE of POOR Judgement! That brilliant move likely cost us more than we realized. McMillian was the only one left that LIKELY Would Have made a Huge difference in our wins and losses. Mike out, Chris Very damaged… who was left? Our Star receiver from the year before. THAT’S WHO. Well, until…… Thanks Bowles. Great job as always. Left us with a rookie who fell apart.. Because he’s a Rookie! Unlike most rookies though, McMillian went the other direction and became our hero just the year before. Fate truly IS a fickle wench..
If your smart…. keep your eyes on McMillian. He shouldn’t be a dark horse in the race but it is what it is….
May 6th, 2026 at 12:46 pm
Welcome to the joeninersfan.com. where we talk about ex players that are no longer on our team. Regularly. Like a lot. It’s a Bucs life.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:46 pm
ME13 could care less about 1k yards lol….its about another RING!!!!
mike said himself, he wanted to play for a contender with a QB!!!!
3&28 doesnt happen if baker doesnt throw that INT….BUCS make the playoffs if baker doesnt choke in the month of DEC…
BROCK>baker
GO BUCS!!!!
May 6th, 2026 at 12:48 pm
His picture looks like lee roy selmon.
I agree with realistic Joe.
I dont know if there is iron in his words or not. They sure weren’t after october 2025 when it was needed.
If its anyone in that room it will be Chris. If this kid leaps we will talk. Flash is fun while it lasts
May 6th, 2026 at 12:49 pm
And, there are soooo many people on here (who’ve never even seen the kid play), saying stupid (real stupid) things like, “he reminds me of a young Mike Evans (did you actually SEE Mike play at A&M? LoL), a Pickens, a Randy Moss (HE played at Marshall Lmao yeah, we ALL know that, but there is/was a whoooole LOT MORE to that story). So, Just STOP. GTFOH
May 6th, 2026 at 1:11 pm
MelvinJunior…. just wondering, Do you have conversations with yourself?
why so many postings on each article? Are you talking to yourself?
May 6th, 2026 at 1:20 pm
Man all those highlights of Evans in the background… We are really going to miss Mike.
And LOL @ anyone thinking 3rd and 28 wasn’t a HUGE factor (along with multiple mid-season skids)…
May 6th, 2026 at 1:29 pm
I’ve said Hurst reminds me of Moss the way he runs and cuts, same body style. Players can remind you of someone else based solely on that alone, doesn’t mean they will turn in that type of career, far from it because no one can say that. Moss caught passes from a lot of different QB’s but not near as many no-name QB’s as Evans has in his career. Moss made Chad Pennington look good and Evans made Johnny FEETBALLS look even better.
May 6th, 2026 at 1:39 pm
Saying I think and saying I know are two totally different confidence levels.
May 6th, 2026 at 1:48 pm
Hopefully the OL stays healthy and Baker doesn’t get all banged up again. I am glad there’s a new and better backup quarterback.
May 6th, 2026 at 1:55 pm
5-12.
May 6th, 2026 at 1:57 pm
Ppl always make the mistake of thinking that ppl who are good at their jobs are automatically good leaders. Not true. Good examples, sure, but true leadership requires a different set of skills than catching a ball. I really dont see Godwin as a leader. He lacks charisma and a willingness to speak out. It will be interesting to watch to see who rises in that room to be a “leader.” I’m not putting my money on any 4th grade projections. Honestly, I see Tez leading that charge
May 6th, 2026 at 2:00 pm
McMillan’s to overcome adversity and fearless stick his neck out, literally, for his team already makes him a leader imo
May 6th, 2026 at 2:08 pm
The bucs should be signed njuku he has years of exp with baker and would be automatically a upgrade to the offense and a great end zone threat for us.
I know money is tight but he’s well worth his weight in gold.
Bakervshpuld flex his nuts like Brady would for gronk.
I tell Jason I take less money on my contract if you go get my weapon
Hes a Miami hurricane tightend they habe a history of being great tight ends the fact no one is even talking bout this while we what stay mediocre with Otton is pure garbage reporting
May 6th, 2026 at 3:19 pm
ME13 saw the writing on the wall. Its not so much about how far the Bucs have fallen ,it’s more about the amount of time ME13 has left that he can compete at a high enough level to win another ring. I think he doesn’t think there’s a SB winner in TAMPA BAY as soon as there will be on the left coast. Too bad but the Bucs may win 9 games 10 if they over-achieve SF is a 12 win team playing for a deep run into the playoffs , the Bucs just hope they get into the playoffs. Can’t hold it against ME13.
May 6th, 2026 at 3:27 pm
ME13 could care less about 1k yards lol….its about another RING!!!!
mike said himself, he wanted to play for a contender with a QB!!!!
3&28 doesnt happen if baker doesnt throw that INT….BUCS make the playoffs if baker doesnt choke in the month of DEC…
BROCK>baker
GO BUCS!!!!
You are 1000% wrong. If you don’t think Mike wanted to break his idle Jerry Rice’s record then you’ve been puffing too much on the bong. every receiver wants 1000 yards
May 6th, 2026 at 3:28 pm
ME13 could care less about 1k yards lol….its about another RING!!!!
mike said himself, he wanted to play for a contender with a QB!!!!
3&28 doesnt happen if baker doesnt throw that INT….BUCS make the playoffs if baker doesnt choke in the month of DEC…
BROCK>baker
GO BUCS!!!!
You are 1000% wrong. If you don’t think Mike wanted to break his idle Jerry Rice’s record then you’ve been puffing too much on the bong. every receiver wants 1000 yards
May 6th, 2026 at 3:38 pm
I wish one player in the entire league would say something about an ex teammate like this,,, “he is no longer with us, so I am not rooting for him at all”
Sissy league, could never imagine Butkis or Dika ever rooting for their competitiors.
May 6th, 2026 at 4:00 pm
Mike’s gone – bye bye.
I couldn’t care less why he left.
We’ll be fine if Zac does his job and I don’t think our WR room is worse with him gone.
He is fragile @ this point, probably was our slowest WR, is less sure handed, etc etc and, unlike Chris, didn’t seem very interested in mentoring our new guys.
I wonder if anyone regrets risking a playoff berth to get him his 1k and a $2,000,000 bonus in 24 ?
May 6th, 2026 at 4:52 pm
I remember when Mike needed 5 yards to the tie record and our coach let a dangerous pass play be called to get him that trophy. All with the division and playoffs on the line. Yeah, the coach is the bad guy …..
May 6th, 2026 at 5:05 pm
Dangerous? Apparently eggplants can use a posting device.
May 6th, 2026 at 5:43 pm
This is probably the main reason Evans left. At the end of the day the Bucs just kept drafting receivers to prepare for Evans leaving. What they didn’t understand was Evans wants to ensure he goes into Canton and that means getting more targets, touches and TD’s. You can’t get those sharing the ball between 4 other guys and yourself. This was his one and only time to be selfish, which 100% agree with it, to go somewhere where he’ll be the number 1 receiver with a coach that knows how to get people the ball.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:32 pm
I know this is really going to chap a few of you Evans Bois. Looking at the past 10 years in Fantasy Football Evans only cracked that list 3 times…2016 #5, 2017 #10, 2018 #9 (2 of those years just barely)
I can already hear the Defenders saying Fantasy means very little, but I beg to differ. They are the stats that players are judge by. Just being a good guy or my favorite player gets you in. I am beginning to think that Evans may have a tough time getting into the HOF, especially if it is between him and D. Adams.
The Buc Fandom will have higher regard for Evans than the National Media and Selection Members. He went to SF in hope to be their #1, get Selection members backing him because of the 49er logo and to avoid his diminishing role in this very talented receiving room.
Big gamble on his part because if he fights injuries and puts up sub par #’s he may not make it into the HOF. Besides the streak and only 1 Super Bowl what makes him stand out more than the upcoming receivers like Lamb, Chase, St. Brown, D. Adams and even Tyreek Hill
Prove me wrong with facts, please. Just don’t give me Mike is great or I own Mike’s jersey.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:09 pm
Except for the Atlanta game, where Evans actually made an impact, he missed so many games due to injury it was almost like he didn’t play last season.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:20 pm
Baker can run a quick passing offense and he can pull it down and create, he can’t consistently find a precision route runner like Egbuka downfield and therefore his production has a ceiling. There is a reason we spent a 3rd rounder on a jump ball receiver. We can only hope he pans out.
May 7th, 2026 at 7:38 pm
Man people are sleeping on the immense motivation factor Baker is gonna have to prove to Evans he backed the wrong horse in Purdy! I for one can’t wait to watch him ball out, and nothing will make me happier than the Bucs in the playoffs and the 49ers watching at home!! Yeah im italian, and hold grudges like that
May 7th, 2026 at 7:54 pm
There goes half of Baker’s tds to SF. McMillian only one to come close to that with his 8 as a rookie