Generally, the Buccaneers have plenty of familiarity with receiver Julio Jones, as he torched the team for years as a member of the Falcons.
But fellow receiver Mike Evans knows Jones’ game as well as anyone from watching years of his game film.
In his Friday press conference, Evans told reporters that when Dirk Koetter came from the Falcons to become the Bucs’ offensive coordinator in 2015, Evans watched Jones to get a feel for Koetter’s scheme.
“[P]robably the most film I’ve watched of a certain player since I’ve been in the league has been him,” Evans said. “He’s an unbelievable player. He still has a lot of juice left. And he’s a great guy, man. It’s just cool talking to him, add another great weapon.”
Evans noted that while injuries derailed Tampa Bay’s receivers in 2021, that’s less likely to happen this season with Jones in tow.
“Having him, it makes us more well-rounded, gives us more depth at the position,” Evans said. “And he’s an all-time great talent, so he’s going to add a lot of things. Hopefully, that can take some double teams off of me. That would be great.”
Last season, Evans caught 74 passes for 1,035 yards and a career-high 14 touchdowns. If Jones can round back into form, that could help Evans’ numbers rise in 2022.
