It quickly became apparent that a previously unthinkable divorce between Mike Evans and the Buccaneers was going to materialize in free agency, and Evans officially signed a three-year, $60.4 million deal with the 49ers on Monday afternoon. With Brandon Aiyuk gone and Jauan Jennings an unrestricted free agent, Evans will team up with Ricky Pearsall to form an injury-prone, high-upside WR duo. Meanwhile, the Bucs now have three clear starters at wide receiver in Emeka Egbuka, Chris Godwin, and Jalen McMillan.
MIKE EVANS
- Evans turns 33 years old in August and has missed 12 games over the past two seasons. Now, he goes to a team that consistently ranks as one of the most injured in football. Regardless of whether the electrical substation theories are substantive, it’s at least worth mentioning that San Francisco’s training staff has struggled to keep their players healthy, and Evans likely has above-average injury risk given his advanced age and recent injury history.
- Evans also averaged only 5.9 yards per target in 2025, posting at least 8.9 YPT in seven straight seasons leading up to last year. But if he can stay healthy, the change of scenery should do him wonders. A Kyle Shanahan-led offense is practically guaranteed to be among the best in football, and Evans has recorded 11+ touchdowns in six different seasons, including in back-to-back seasons in 2023 and 2024.
- George Kittle may not be ready for Week 1 after a late-season Achilles tear (though all reports indicate his recovery is going perfectly). With Aiyuk gone and Jennings likely signing elsewhere, Evans will immediately step into a big role for a 49ers offense that’s desperate for playmakers at WR. While Evans struggled on a per-target basis, he was still highly effective as a target earner, getting 0.29 targets per route run in the eight games he played. He’s shown no signs of slowing down in that regard, and Shanahan should put him in position to succeed.
- Evans’ health is a big question mark, and it’s fair to question how much he has left in the tank after averaging 5.9 YPT in his age-32 season, but the landing spot is ideal. Evans has double-digit touchdown upside in San Francisco, along with plenty of age-related risk.
OTHER 49ERS PASS CATCHERS
- Kittle (once healthy) and Christian McCaffrey offer plenty of pass-catching help, but the 49ers were still in need of actual wideout help with a thin depth chart after Pearsall. The former first-round pick only played nine games in 2025 and somehow didn’t score a touchdown on 53 targets, but he averaged 10.0 yards per target and earned targets at a respectable clip (16.5% target share; 0.19 targets per route run) as a sophomore. Evans will likely be the WR1 here, but he has a low floor, and Pearsall can post viable weeks as the WR2 in this offense. The Evans addition isn’t great for him, but it’s not a death blow, either.
- Kittle (19.3%) and CMC (22.6%) both posted higher target shares than we’re used to seeing from them given the WR injuries the Niners endured in 2025. They likely won’t be able to replicate that with Evans on board in 2026, but both will be fantasy-relevant when on the field. Kittle, of course, has a long road ahead of him after a January Achilles tear, plus he turns 33 in October. He may begin the season on the PUP list, which would mean he couldn’t debut until Week 5.
BUCS PASS CATCHERS
- Egbuka had one of the most fascinating rookie seasons in recent memory, averaging 75.2 yards per game amidst Tampa Bay WR injuries during the first half of the season and only 32.6 yards per game in Tampa Bay’s final eight games. McMillan returned from a serious neck injury and immediately challenged Egbuka for WR3 duties while the Buccaneers insisted on using Evans and Godwin in full-time roles ahead of their promising rookie. With Evans gone, the road is clear for Egbuka to regain an every-snap role, plus Josh Grizzard‘s exit and the hiring of Zac Robinson as the Bucs’ OC brings promise that any weird Egbuka usage is in the past. Egbuka averaged only 7.4 yards per target on the season, but the flashes he displayed early in the season left an impression.
- Godwin is now 30 years old, coming off a season in which he played nine games and averaged a career-low 7.1 yards per target. He’s now played 16 of a possible 34 games over the past two seasons and has two exciting young WRs behind him. He’ll still see the field, but the best days of Godwin’s career are behind him.
- McMillan has only played 17 games in two seasons but has impressed in both. He scored eight touchdowns as a rookie (zero in Year 2, to be fair) and then averaged 11.9 yards per target (on 15 targets, to be fair) last season. Egbuka is likely the WR1 here and the Bucs have competent pass catchers elsewhere (Bucky Irving and Kenneth Gainwell at RB; Cade Otton at TE), but McMillan still warrants a look.
