The Buccaneers fell behind the Panthers in the third quarter on Sunday, but it turned out to be a brief change of fortunes.
Wide receiver Mike Evans beat his man off the line and took a pass from Baker Mayfield 75 yards for a touchdown that put the Bucs up for good. The touchdown was the 91st of his career, which is tied for 13th in league history, and he ended the night with seven catches for 162 yards. That pushed him to 1,012 yards on the season, which means that he’s had 1,000 receiving yards in all 10 of his NFL seasons.
Jerry Rice is the only receiver who has had more 1,000-yard seasons and Evans said after the 21-18 win that he’s hoping to make a run at Rice’s 14-season mark.
“I’m happy we got the win, most importantly,” Evans said, via the team’s website. “I’m happy with the record, obviously. I’ve had a lot of great quarterbacks and offensive coordinators who believed in me, so I really appreciate them. Hopefully I can keep that streak going for however long my career goes.”
The win ended a two-game Bucs losing streak and keeps them a game back of the Falcons in the NFC South heading into next weekend’s game in Atlanta. Evans is one of the biggest reasons to think the Bucs can win that game and make a run at a division title in the final weeks of the season.
