Mike Evans returned to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this offseason. But two other teams in particular had the star wide receiver's interest in the event he actually hit free agency: The Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs.
"I mean, in the back of my mind," Evans told NFL Network at Buccaneers training camp, "I'm thinking Houston, Kansas City. I love Pat Mahomes' game. I'm thinking those two teams. And I'm obviously thinking the Bucs."
In the end, Evans didn't test free agency at all, signing a two-year, $52 million contract extension with Tampa Bay ahead of the veteran signing period. And it seems like that was always the most likely outcome for the five-time Pro Bowler, who began his career as a first-round draft pick of the Buccaneers back in 2014.
"I mean, I've been here my whole career," he explained. "And that was a goal of mine, obviously. ... It would've been extremely hard, if I hit free agency, to leave here. But this is where my family knows. My kids were born here. My wife's been here a long time."
And it was Evans' wife, Ashley, who had a big hand in the wideout ultimately putting pen to paper.
"It was really her decision, is the reason why I decided to stay," he said. "She gave me the go-ahead. ... I was gonna hit free agency, and then, we were at dinner; she said, 'I think you should stay in Tampa.'"
Evans fully agreed with her recommendation, he said, and now he's due to enter Year 11 with the same team that drafted him, already etched into NFL history as the only player to log 10 straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons to start his career.
The Chiefs, meanwhile, went on to sign Marquise "Hollywood" Brown in free agency, then spend a first-round pick on Xavier Worthy out wide. The Texans added to their own wide receiver room by acquiring Stefon Diggs via trade from the Buffalo Bills.
