Mike Evans, at first glance, might come off as a pretty laid-back guy, but there’s definitely a more intimidating side to him.
Standing tall at six feet, five inches and weighing in at 231 pounds, he’s mostly pure muscle—with some ink from Harry Potter tattoos that reveal his love for the book series.
But cornerbacks, like Jaylen Watson of the Rams, often don’t get to see that softer side.
In fact, they get a front-row view of his competitive spirit instead.
For instance, Watson faced off against Evans on third down at the Los Angeles 2-yard line, where the 49ers were trying to extend their slim 10-7 lead after halftime.
If Kyle Shanahan has learned anything over the course of Evans’ 12-year career, it’s that this future Hall-of-Famer wasn’t going to let them settle for just a field goal.
“We’ve watched Mike do that for his whole career,” Shanahan said, adding that he was thrilled to call plays for him.
Watson, who is a solid 6-foot-2, engaged Evans right at the line and kept that pressure on as Evans made a fade route toward the end zone. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, there was just 0.8 yards between Evans and the defender covering him.
Despite that tight coverage, the throw went up anyway. The 49ers ended that drive with a touchdown, securing a 17-7 lead in a commanding 27-7 season-opening win.
That marked the 109th touchdown of Evans’ career—just two short of tying Tony Gonzalez for ninth all-time—and his first with the 49ers, having previously played with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Interestingly, the pass from quarterback Brock Purdy had only a 22.5% likelihood of being completed, according to Next Gen Stats. Yet Purdy threw it with complete confidence in Evans, and he had solid reasoning.
As left tackle Trent Williams described it, “He’s a jump ball extraordinaire.” Just before that, he even affectionately referred to Evans as “Hall of Fame Mike, man.”
“Those 50-50 balls,” Williams noted, “are not really 50-50.”
When it comes to the end zone fade, Evans is unmatched. It hasn’t been a frequent option in Shanahan’s playbook—perhaps because he hasn’t had a receiver like Evans before.
“It was nice to have a type of receiver to throw a fade to him like that,” Shanahan commented.
Since 2018, Evans has racked up 34 touchdowns specifically on go/fade routes, which is seven more than the next closest receiver, Davante Adams.
Even when closely guarded—like when the cornerback could actually read the “The Chosen One” tattoo on Evans’ calf—Evans remains a reliable target. Since 2022, he has been tied for the NFL lead with 10 touchdowns caught in tight windows, according to ESPN Insights.
Purdy, Shanahan, and offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak have never had a player quite like him.
Of the players who’ve made up most of Purdy’s targets since his starting role began in 2023, only George Kittle shares similar physical traits with Evans.
Purdy has shown he prefers throwing to the few larger receivers the 49ers have had.
49ers’ top-five targeted WRs, 2023-25
- George Kittle (6-4, 250), 253 targets
- Jauan Jennings (6-3, 212), 236 targets
- Christian McCaffrey (5-11, 210), 231 targets
- Deebo Samuel (6-0, 215), 170 targets
- Brandon Aiyuk (6-0, 200), 152 targets
He seems to have bonded quickly with Evans, too.
Purdy achieved a passer rating of 135.4 when targeting Evans, which is the highest for any receiver other than Demarcus Robinson, who caught a 39-yard touchdown pass set up by Evans drawing a safety into double coverage.
They connected for 49 yards on six catches, all successful first downs. During their opening drive, Purdy called Evans’ number three times on third down, managing to move the chains each time.
Evans may be new to the 49ers, but he’s already shown his significance, especially after the loss of rookie De’Zhaun Stribling and uncertainty surrounding Christian Kirk’s status.
There was always some anticipation about the impact Evans would have after signing a three-year, $42 million deal this offseason. The real question was whether he could stay on the field or simply add another name to the 49ers’ injury report.
Last season, Evans’ 11-year streak of 1,000-yard seasons ended when he suffered a hamstring injury and a broken collarbone, causing him to miss nine games.
He struggled with quad and hamstring issues during training camp.
Yet, he looked fit during Thursday night’s game.
Evans mentioned that Kittle was particularly persuasive during the free-agency recruitment, but Purdy was also a significant factor in his decision to join the team. After building rapport throughout training camp and OTAs, it didn’t take long for them to display their chemistry during real games.
“Brock threw a great ball,” Evans noted about the touchdown pass, adding, “We got the coverage we wanted, and we practiced that a lot the last couple of weeks. I was happy that paid off, and we were able to keep scoring after that.”
Evans appears to be wired to want the ball when it matters most. He gets an intense focus as the team approaches the end zone.
During their opening drive of the second half, NFL cameras captured Evans telling a staff member on the bench, “Third down in the red area, I need a shot.”
Shanahan seemingly got the message, and it’s clear he won’t regret utilizing this unique talent going forward.
