Mike Evans will play a 13th season. The question is: Will the wide receiver return to Tampa, or will he finish his career elsewhere?
"Love Mike and would love to have Mike back," Bucs General Manager Jason Licht said Tuesday, via video from Pewter Report. "He's earned the right with his resume, and Mike as a person, what he's meant to this entire community, fan base, all of us. I could go on and on, which we have. He's earned that right. We'd love to have Mike back. We'll just see how the process goes."
Licht has talked to Evans and the wide receiver's agent, Deryk Gilmore. The sides have "a very open line of communication," Licht said. But Licht acknowledged he has no guarantee the Bucs will get a chance to match once Evans hits free agency on March 11.
Evans ranks 20th on PFT’s top-100 free agents list.
"We'll have to see how that goes. I can't tell you for sure that we would," Licht said. I don't know right now we're in the point where we're at is he's kind of testing the market and we know we do have open lines of communication and always will."
Evans, 33, had hamstring and collarbone injuries last season, forcing him to miss nine games. It was his first non-1,000-yard season, as he had career lows in catches (30) and yards (368).
It sounds as if Evans has played his final game in Tampa, but the Bucs are holding out hope they can get him back.
"Ultimately, we’d like to have him retire as a Buc," Licht said.
Regardless, Licht said Evans has "earned" being called one of the franchise's all-time great players, and when he retires, Evans will join the likes of Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks, John Lynch and Doug Williams in the team's Ring of Honor.