The San Francisco 49ers got high marks for their free-agent signing of wide receiver Mike Evans, who reportedly left the Buccaneers for less money. And Kyle Shanahan sounded off about the blockbuster addition of Evans, according to a post on X by Vic Tafur.
“He’s definitely a Hall of Famer,” Shanahan said. “He’s as good as it gets, the way he plays. I’ve always just liked the competitor of Mike. Really, just how he’s come to work every day. Just people I know who have practiced with him. The way he is in the building. How important football is to him.
“The fact that he chose to come to us, just for the football situation and stuff. (It) shows how important football is to this guy. When you have veterans, and we’ve got a number of veterans, I love the thought of pairing him up with some of the guys that, to me, are playing for one reason. And that’s trying to get to a Super Bowl.”
How will WR Mike Evans fit with the 49ers?
A former opponent of Evans, who is in the Hall of Fame, said he knows what the 49ers have gotten, according to ninerswire.com.
“He’s just a veteran guy that's a really good football player still, and that wants to win, and he’s a great dude,” Former Panthers standout Luke Kuechly said. “Think about it, he was in Florida, no state income tax, takes less to come out here, big state income tax. He truly came here because of the guys in the locker room and what Kyle does on the offensive side of the ball.”
Kuechly said playing against Evans was a challenge for both him and Evans.
“We always had a tremendous amount of respect for each other, and that’s what I always liked about Mike,” Kuechly said. “He is ultra-competitive, and he wants to win. But he has a ton of respect for not only the game but for the other guys that play. And he does it the right way.
“I think he’s going to come in and fit in right away, and I think he just wants to win. At the end of the day, he wants to win.”
