What started as an ultimatum before Week 1 ended up with a new two-year deal for Mike Evans to remain with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
It seemed as though the future Hall of Famer would be testing the open market this offseason, hitting free agency for the first time in his career. Even at his age, Evans remains arguably the best wide receiver in football and is comfortably in the same conversation as guys like Justin Jefferson and Tyreek Hill.
For the 10th straight season, Evans eclipsed 1,000 yards and he finished last season tied with Hill for the most touchdowns by a receiver. That's the type of elite production that was about to hit the market for teams like the Chiefs, Jets, and Texans to potentially steal but the Bucs prevented that from happening on Monday morning.
The Bucs and Evans agreed to a two-year, $52 million contract that will keep him in Tampa Bay and off the market. It was news fans in Tampa Bay have been waiting all season to hear, and it comes on the heels of the team coming as close as it ever has to possibly losing the best player in franchise history.
That won't happen, and news that a new deal had been reached was met exactly the way you'd expect it to.
Best memes and reactions after Buccaneers re-sign Mike Evans
MICHAEL.
— Trevor Sikkema (@TampaBayTre) March 4, 2024
A BUCCANEER FOR LIFE.
EVANS. https://t.co/w3t4ZYtao8
Jason Licht, man. Every offseason. Beast.
— Jon Ledyard (@LedyardNFLDraft) March 4, 2024
M1K3 MOOD!!!!! pic.twitter.com/xtTCG1U0nA
— Stank Bastard (@StankBastard) March 4, 2024
@jasonrlicht every time he’s told he can’t get the band back together pic.twitter.com/a58K8BwaFO
— Bucs France (@BucsFrance) March 4, 2024
https://t.co/rK0Lp3ED5I pic.twitter.com/NwYvJigrJA
— J. Kanno (@BucsDistrict) March 4, 2024
Mike Evans still a Buccaneer! pic.twitter.com/20BoDnGXD3
— 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗹𝗶™ 🏴☠️ (@TheSamerAli) March 4, 2024
Hahahaha all those wasted jersey swaps, Mike was never going anywhere https://t.co/cjQ9noJSDl
— Michael (@MJ3_TB) March 4, 2024
Can’t overstate how much this means to the Bucs organization and fanbase https://t.co/uAs8xxgGeT
— Josh Crysler (@josh_crysler) March 4, 2024
SIGNED!!!!!!! M1K3 not going anywhere!!! LFG!!! pic.twitter.com/sZ0Sdkzq6C
— Port Richey Lou (@Lou_Port_Richey) March 4, 2024
Perhaps the best message came from Evans himself, who reportedly texted his agent that he wanted to be with the Bucs for life, but was quick to react to the news on his Instagram account after it became official.
Mike Evans seems happy to be home. pic.twitter.com/uszYw1qfwK
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 4, 2024
That'll bring a tear to the eye.
Despite all of the rumors that popped up, this always seemed like it would end with Evans returning to Tampa Bay. While his ultimatum wasn't met before the season, there was never any bad blood between the two sides and that was evident in this deal getting reached before free agency opened.
On Friday Evans indicated that he was going to test the market and before breakfast was over on Monday a deal was done. Tampa Bay had already come close enough to losing the best offensive player in franchise history and they weren't going to get any closer to the edge.
It's a decision that pleases everyone, from the fans to man everyone wanted to see return next season.