ESPN’s Nick Wagoner believes Mike Evans’ “red zone and tight window acumen should translate quickly” into the 49ers’ offense.

12 March 2026

Wagoner prefaced the statement by revealing that in the first meeting between 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan and Evans, “Shanahan laid out the plan for how he will be incorporated into an offense that also includes” RB Christian McCaffrey, TE George Kittle and QB Brock Purdy. McCaffrey’s 95 red zone touches in the 2025 regular season led all 49ers players by 79 and all other NFL players by 21. Knowing that Shanahan is already scheming up red zone opportunities for Evans is great to hear. McCaffrey can also lose a few red zone touches and still remain an elite RB1. There should be more than enough opportunities in scoring position for both players to feast. Evans currently projects as a WR2 with double-digit touchdown upside.