Pat Surtain II, the ninth-overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, wears jersey number two for the Denver Broncos. Mike Evans should expect to see that number a lot on Sunday.
The Broncos recently rewarded Surtain, who went to two Pro Bowls in his first three seasons, with the largest contract ever signed by an NFL defensive back. It's an acknowledgement of what has been obvious since very early in his career: He is clearly one of the best players in the NFL at one of its most difficult positions.
Most notably, the Broncos coaching staff feels comfortable letting Surtain shadow the opposing team's number-one receiver, moving from one side of the field to the other to stay with his man. That's a relative rarity in the NFL, in which most teams keep their corners either on the left and right sides or the "boundary" and "field" sides based on which set of hashmarks the ball is on. Surtain followed Seattle wideout DK Metcalf on all but one of his routes in Week One, then did mostly the same in Week Two with Pittsburgh's George Pickens.
Surtain is one of the main reasons that Denver's defense is allowing only 134.0 passing yards per game through two weeks, fourth lowest in the NFL, and that defense is the next challenge for Baker Mayfield and the Bucs' 13th-ranked passing attack. The Bucs essentially have 1A and 1B receivers in Mike Evan and Chris Godwin, but Godwin runs the majority of his snaps out of the slot. That means if the Broncos choose to put Surtain in shadow mode, he will almost certainly be assigned to Evans.
"That's what a guy like Pat Surtain can offer a defense – true, one-on-one, shut one side of the field down," said Mayfield. "He's that type of player. He's got unbelievable ball skills, he can run with guys, he understands concepts and can read the patterns really well. He's a guy that is going to have his PBUs and make plays on the ball, but we have to design things to be able to get Mike some matchups other than just him. We also trust Mike in one-on-one scenarios regardless."
Evans, of course, is one of the most accomplished pass-catchers of his generation and he's plenty of battles against the NFL's top-level cornerbacks, and he's won his share. Through two games this season Evans has eight catches for 103 yads and two touchdowns, raising his career touchdown reception total to 96. That's currently tied with the Raiders' Davante Adams for the 12th most in franchise history. The last time the Bucs played the Broncos – in 2020, one year before Surtain's arrival – Evans only caught two passes for two yards, but they both went for touchdowns. Evans won't have to beat Surtain on every route to make a big impact on Sunday; he can do so with big plays in key moments, as he has done throughout his career.
As much praise as Mayfield understandably heaps on Surtain, that won't keep him from looking to one of his favorite targets on Sunday no matter who is in coverage.
"Depending on the route, depending on the concept of how he's playing it, you can kind of eliminate it quicker," said Mayfield. "But, still, Mike is our guy, so I'm still trusting him."
