By: Keith Larson – Bucs Report– Special to Sports Talk Florida
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were able to pull off something most “experts” said was unattainable this offseason. They were able to bring back the majority of their pending free agents, again. At some point these “experts” need to quit doubting Bucs general manager Jason Licht and company. But I digress.
Two of the previously mentioned re-signings were wide receiver Mike Evans and quarterback Baker Mayfield. Evans spoke recently about Mayfield’s first season in Tampa while on a recent appearance on TexAgs Radio. He also made an interesting comparison of Mayfield to a former college teammate. Johnny Manziel.
“Man, Baker, man, he surprised me a lot,” Evans said on TexAgs Radio via JoeBucsFan.com. “With not his game, I knew he was a really good player, just how he is as a leader and a teammate. He really surprised me a lot. He’s similar to Johnny, his playing style. I mean, really similar. So it was easy to adjust to play with him. Shorter quarterback. Great athlete. Throws like a baseball player, like really tight spiral. Really good arm. Improvise, can do all those things. Super tough. So I’m looking forward to seeing what we can do this year.”
Evans is obviously familiar with Manziel due to his time at Texas A&M. The similarities between Mayfield and Manziel are obvious. Both are from Texas, both won the Heisman Trophy, both were drafted in the first round by the Cleveland Browns. And both definitely didn’t lack confidence and played with plenty of swagger.
We’re the similarities stop is after both quarterbacks had a lackluster start to their NFL career, only Mayfield has been able to stay in the league. That’s not to say Mayfield’s career hasn’t been a bit shaky. After spending time with three teams in one year, Mayfield appears to have found a home in Tampa. While Manziel is well, at home.
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