Nope, that isn't a typo. Attention Jason Licht and all Buccaneers personnel staff: the player needed to solidify the Bucs' secondary has been found and he's already on the team. He's just on the wrong side of the ball.
Forget that Mike Evans is one of only three players in NFL history to start his career with five consecutive 1,000-yard receiving NFL seasons. So what that he broke both the franchise record for career touchdowns and the franchise record for career receiving yards as a 25-year-old? It doesn't matter that he led the team in touchdowns for the 2018 season after a two-touchdown, 106-yard game. Who cares if he had the third-highest yards-per-reception average in the league with 17.72 this past season? After his Pro Bowl performance in the pouring rain and Florida-equivalent-to-freezing temperatures, move this man to outside corner.
After the NFC had been largely quiet on offense, Evans decided to take matters into his own hands by playing both sides of the ball. Lined up on Cleveland's Jarvis Landry at corner in the fourth quarter, Evans showed perfect technique as he methodically turned his head to track the ball. He couldn't quite get back underneath Landry as the football was a bit underthrown and failed to make the grab.
Evans shook it off as he lined up on the next play yet again on Landry. The Browns' wide receiver cut inside on a shallow post and this time Evans would not be outdone. He got underneath Landry and in reading the eyes of Texans' quarterback Deshaun Watson, made a perfect play and picked him off. Not satisfied with just making the grab and with his team down a significant margin, he lateraled the ball off and it turned into backyard football. It showed how selfless a player he truly is, getting credit for just three yards of the return because of his creativity. He even started throwing around blocks as the ball jumped from player to player while the NFC tried to advance it. The NFC would fail to capitalize on the turnover but the damage was done. The most memorable play of the game belonged to the NFC and to Bucs' wide receiver Mike Evans. And that's really what matters.
In fact, Mike Evans tweeted this yesterday and we now know what it means. "#NextLevel" clearly means he's becoming a two-way player and will be playing outside corner for the Bucs next season.
