Buccaneers: Mike Evans can silence doubters with big game in Super Bowl 55

While the focus for Super Bowl 55 will be on Buccaneers QB Tom Brady and Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, Mike Evans has a lot to play for.

No matter what happens in Super Bowl 55, this year’s postseason run is going to be awfully special for seven-year pro Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans.

Sure, there’s going to be no shortage of talk about the two big-name stars in the game: Bucs quarterback Tom Brady and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. And after winning it all a year ago, the Chiefs’ offensive support cast surrounding Mahomes is going to get plenty of attention, too.

But for Evans, who finally got to the playoffs after years of waiting, he’ll have the chance to be a big-name X-factor on the brightest of stages.

There are plenty of reasons why Evans is poised to go off during the Super Bowl. Despite Tampa Bay having a loaded cast of offensive weapons at Brady’s disposal, the fact Evans was still the primary go-to target — leading all Bucs receivers with 70 receptions and 1,006 receiving yards — likely means he’ll get the lion’s share of looks from Brady on Feb. 7.

And for those questioning whether or not he can be the true difference-maker on the biggest of stages, a big game in the Super Bowl would put Evans into the cast of elite players who’ve added exceptional postseason efforts to their accolade sheet.

Evans was already dominant during Wild Card weekend over the Washington Football Team, registering 119 yards on six catches during the Buccaneers’ 31-23 win. And while his total receiving yards were down in both the divisional and conference championship rounds, Evans still managed to score touchdowns in each of those two games.

With Kansas City’s offense as potent as ever, it’ll be up to Evans and Brady to continue their season-long rapport on a regular basis.

Mike Evans, Buccaneers have a good shot vs. Chiefs secondary

One of the primary reasons why the Chiefs pulled off such a dominant win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship round was because of their ability to shut down Bills No. 1 wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the tune of six catches for 77 yards. Diggs did damage, yes, but he wasn’t quite the impact player Buffalo needed him to be.

Evans, however, is different. Unlike Diggs’ smaller 6-foot-0, 191-pound frame, Evans won’t hesitate to use his massive 6-foot-5, 231-pound build to bully Kansas City’s cornerbacks. Whereas Diggs needed to use speed and elusiveness, Evans can play with a level of physicality the Chiefs haven’t quite seen all too often this postseason.

Defensively during the regular season, Kansas City was in the middle of the pack in terms of pass defense, allowing an average of 6.4 yards per pass attempt — good for 18th. On top of that, Football Outsiders ranked the Chiefs pass defense with the No. 16 overall DVOA (6.7 percent), again suggesting this unit is good enough to compete but won’t be considered dominant.

For comparison, Washington owned the second-best defensive DVOA against the pass in 2020, and Evans essentially had a field day with the Football Team’s defense in the Wild Card round.

While Brady is going to be the focal point and the talk of the media, it’s pretty safe to assume the Super Bowl means far more to Evans, who’ll have the opportunity to wrap up his first trip into the postseason with the most cherished of items.

A Super Bowl ring.

Super Bowl 55 kicks off on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 6:30 p.m. ET.