Buccaneers WR Mike Evans Sets Record Straight on Signing Autographs for Referees

By Brian Jones

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans was spotted with two referees writing something on a white card after the team's 21-3 loss to the Carolina Panthers. It appeared that Evans was signing autographs for the referees, which would be against NFL rules. But when the star wide receiver spoke to reporters on Tuesday, Evans explained what was on the video. 

"I wasn't signing my autograph, I'll tell you that," Evans said, per Greg Auman of TheAthletic.com. "I talk to a lot of officials, we're all human beings. He's a nice guy. That's all. We were just talking about, you know, golf. That's all we were talking about." That still leaves the question of what did Evans write on the card? The NFL did its investigation and it's likely the referees who approached Evans won't be punished because the league confirmed they didn't ask for an autograph. 

"After speaking with the individuals involved, we have confirmed that the postgame interaction between [side judge] Jeff Lamberth, [line judge] Tripp Sutter, and Mike Evans did not involve a request by the game officials for an autograph," a statement from the NFL read, per NFL.com. "Both Lamberth and Sutter have been reminded of the importance of avoiding even the appearance of impropriety when interacting with players, coaches, and club staff on gameday — including during the pregame and postgame time periods."  

According to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Lamberth was getting Evans' phone number to pass it along to a golf pro to get him lessons. Pelissero added that Lamberth didn't have any paper, which led to him borrowing it from another official. 

Evans is not worried about the referee situation because the team lost on Sunday. And while several things went wrong in the game, Evans takes the blame for the loss because he dropped a pass in the first quarter that would have resulted in a touchdown. "No one play is the sole reason we lose but that was definitely the biggest reason. We seen the life go out of us," Evans said after the game, per Yahoo Sports. "It was tough. Wide open. I'm one of the best in the game – I got to catch that."

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