REPORT: Jets attempted to trade for Bucs WR Mike Evans
The @nypost is reporting the Jets tried to trade for #Bucs WR Mike Evans.
GM Joe Douglas “inquired about wide receivers like Davante Adams and Mike Evans, but the Raiders and Buccaneers were not willing to trade them.”— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) November 1, 2023
GM Jason Licht told the world on Tuesday that Mike Evans wasn’t for sale, but that didn’t prevent teams from trying.
Brian Costello of the New York Post reported on Wednesday that Jets General Manager Joe Douglas called the Tampa Bay Buccaneers inquiring about Mike Evans at the NFL trade deadline. Clearly, the Bucs said no, as Evans remains in Tampa Bay — furthermore, Tampa Bay Times reporter Rick Stroud added that the Jets also inquired in August about trading for Evans but that “it wasn’t a long conversation.”
Evans was the subject (and technically still remains the subject) of a public contract dispute with the team during the offseason, which is likely why he’s drawn so much interest in the potential trade market. He would have had the opportunity to play with Aaron Rodgers in August, but as it stands now, Evans would have been paired with quarterback Zach Wilson — a far less appealing prospect.
Mike Evans and the Bucs will probably re-evaluate his contract demands once they see how he plays over the full course of the season. Until then, though, with the trade deadline passed, Evans will be a Buccaneer until the end of 2023.
