Another season, another 1,000 yards for Buccaneers' Mike Evans. With his performance in Tampa Bay's 21-18 win over the Panthers in Week 13, the veteran wideout recorded his 10th straight season with at least a 1,000 receiving yards.
Evans is now tied with Randy Moss for the second-most 1,000-yard seasons of all time and only trails Jerry Rice for the record. Evans' 10 consecutive 1,000-yard campaigns are the second-most in league history as well and only trail Rice. He is also the first player in NFL history to begin a career with 10 straight 1,000-yard seasons.
Rice has the NFL record with 11 straight seasons with 1,000 receiving yards, accomplishing the feat from 1986 to 1996. After Sunday, Evans moves into second on that list after breaking his tie with fellow Hall of Fame receiver Tim Brown (1993-2001). Overall, Rice has 14 seasons of at least 1,000 yards and Evans is now knotted with Moss for second.
Evans crossed the 1,000-yard threshold off of an 11-yard catch from Baker Mayfield in the fourth quarter of Sunday's win. The 30-year-old came into this game 150 yards short of the milestone and needed an offensive explosion to get there, which he delivered. Evans finished his afternoon with 162 yards on seven catches. Evans' receiving yard totals represented 80% of the team's total receiving yards in the winning effort.
A large chunk of his totals came on a 75-yard touchdown reception, which was the longest of his career.
Mike Evans goes 75 yards to get the lead back!
— NFL (@NFL) December 3, 2023
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"It means a lot," Evans told CBS Sports sideline reporter Tiffany Blackmon of the milestone following the game. "I put my blood, sweat, and tears into this. I'm just trying to lead by example. I've had a lot of great teammates along the way. I hope I can just keep doing it."
Evans' career-best for receiving yards in a single season came in 2018 when he totaled 1,524 yards. After this game, he sits at 1,012 yards with five games to play. If he maintains his pace, he'd finish with roughly 1,433 yards receiving, which would be the second-best season of his career in that regard.
