GM wants longer Evans deal
TAMPA — The Bucs officially picked up the fifthyear option Monday on Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans, and general manager Jason Licht is optimistic he can work out a long-term deal.
“I hope Mike is a Buc for life,” Licht said Monday. “Today we picked up his option. That wasn’t a very tough decision, and we’ll take it from there. I can promise you at some point … we’ll be contacting his agent to try to make an offer that will make him a Buc long term.”
Evans, 23, who had 12 touchdown catches in 2016 to tie his team record he set as a rookie, is under contract through the 2018 season. The Bucs may have a new deal for Evans long before he gets to that 2018 contract, but it would represent a significant raise for him. He is due to make $690,000 in base salary in 2017 in the final year of his rookie contract and would make at least $12.2 million on his fifth-year option for 2018 — the value for last year’s option for his position.
It’s the first time the Bucs have exercised a fifthyear option since the current CBA went into place. They declined with Adrian Clayborn (2011 first round) and Doug Martin (2012) and did not have a firstround pick in 2013. Only four other NFL teams have yet to exercise a fifth-year option: the Packers, Seahawks, Raiders and Jaguars.
The Bucs had all five of their exclusive-rights free agents sign tenders Monday: tight end Cameron Brate, wide receiver Adam Humphries, defensive back Jude Adjei-Barimah, linebacker Adarius Glanton and wide receiver Freddie Martino.
Meanwhile, defensive tackle Gerald McCoy — who goes up against Ali Marpet in practice every day — said that he’s excited about the prospect of the third-year guard getting a look at center this spring.
“Just from my analysis, I think Ali is a great guard. I think he’ll be a dominant next-level center in my personal opinion,” McCoy said. “He’s a small-space guy, and you get him in a small space, you’re in trouble. From here to here is all a center needs, and from here to here, with how athletic he is, he’s got these grippers [where] once he puts his hands on you, you’re in trouble. I truly believe, and you can stamp this and quote it: I believe Ali Marpet will be a dominant — not good — dominant center.”