Bucs WR grew up rooting for Peyton Manning, not Tom Brady

There was a time when young football fans had to make a difficult decision: Root for Tom Brady or Peyton Manning in one of the great quarterback rivalries in the NFL.

Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans sided with Manning.

Those allegiances changed quickly this season when Brady decided to sign with the Buccaneers, where Evans was already established as the best receiver in franchise history.

“It’s great catching passes from the (greatest of all-time),” Evans said this week. “I never thought I would be able to get that opportunity. You know, when I was a kid, I grew up not liking Tom Brady because I was a Peyton Manning fan. Now, I’m the biggest Tom Brady fan.”

Brady and Evans, who was 6 when Brady was drafted, had an instant connection. Evans finished fourth in the NFL with 13 receiving touchdowns in the regular season and recorded his seventh straight 1,000-yard season in his first seven seasons.

Only Randy Moss was able to do it in his first six seasons.

Evans was able to reach that plateau despite a career-low 109 targets. Part of the reduction in opportunities was the result of the offense having so many weapons.

Chris Godwin has also established himself as one of the game’s top receivers, and second-year speedster Scotty Miller has emerged as a weapon for Brady, who also brought his good friend Rob Gronkowski with him to play tight end.

The Bucs already had an established tight end in Cameron Brate, then brought in one of the best receivers of the era in Antonio Brown midseason. Then there is the emergence of rookie wideout Tyler Johnson and Leonard Fournette’s continued improvement as a receiving option out of the backfield.

Evans, a 27-year-old former first-round pick, is still the alpha of the group and wasn’t afraid to let Brady know.

“Tom, third down, look to me,” Evans said of how he communicates to his quarterback that he wants the ball. “Or Tom, they’re playing a lot of (man-to-man coverage) right now, look for me. And he knows that. I haven’t had to say it much.”

Evans, the Buccaneers’ Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee for a second-consecutive season, is thrilled for the opportunity to play in the Super Bowl in his home stadium after some of the tough times he has endured in Tampa.

The Buccaneers had just one winning season in his first six years, posting a combined 34-62 record and failing to make the postseason.

“I had some doubts,” he admitted, referring to the Bucs’ every making the playoffs. “But I just did my job, and our front office did a great job putting this team together. We’ve always had talent. It was just a matter of getting over the hump.”

To do that, they will need to get past the Chiefs, who handed the Bucs their last loss in November. Evans had two touchdowns on three receptions in that game.

Interestingly, Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes may be his favorite player had Evans been a kid now.

Like Mahomes, Evans grew up in Texas. Evans admits he has followed Mahomes’ career and knew early on he would be a star.

“I kept up with the high school football a little bit more back then because I was in college still,” Evans said. “He was an unbelievable player, especially when he was at (Texas) Tech. I got to follow him because (Kliff) Kingsbury was my offensive coordinator one year when I was at (Texas) A&M, and I got to watch him. He was one of the most fun players to watch in college.

“I thought he should have been the No. 1 draft pick.”

Evans had to watch Brady beat his guy Manning a whole lot as a fan. He hopes Brady has another win in him on Sunday.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.