Mike Evans caught fire early on Sunday and never looked back in a 29-7 romp of the Bears.
Tampa Bay's star pass-catcher nabbed a 13-yard touchdown strike from Jameis Winston to put the Bucs up 10-0 at the end of the first quarter, setting up a powerful seven-catch, 93-yard day that saw him lead the team in targets -- and, for once, not face constant double teams.
"The last couple of seasons, the Bears double-teamed me crazy," Evans said, per Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times. "I probably saw maybe one or two double-teams today. It was great. We had a lot of one-on-one opportunities. We have a lot of talent, so all we have to do beat the one-on-one matchups. I hope it's like this every week, but it's obviously not."
This year's Bucs have more to offer than simply Evans through the air. Deep-threat DeSean Jackson must be respected on every play, while Winston also has wideout Adam Humphries and underrated tight end Cameron Brate to throw to. Did we mention rookie O.J. Howard?
It's especially good news for Evans, who snagged that touchdown against one defender. In year's past, it could have -- would have -- been two or more to tangle with. It's a trend that could add up to a monster season for one of the NFC's most promising young receivers.
"I saw one-on-one coverage," coach Dirk Koetter said after the game. "I figured that's where Jameis was going to go with the ball. That's something we work on a lot, and Mike and Jameis have put a lot of time in that red-zone fade ball. We don't get single coverage on Mike very often, so when we do, we're happy to see it."
