NEW ORLEANS — Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans will be suspended one game for his role in the second-half scuffle that cleared both team's benches during the Saints' 20-10 loss to the Buccaneers, the NFL announced Monday.
The altercation happened in the fourth quarter when the game was tied at 3.
Evans came out of nowhere to take out Marshon Lattimore. The two went to the ground and were surrounded by their teammates. Both players would be ejected. The Bucs would score on their next possession to take the lead.
"You knocked your opponent to the ground and a melee ensued involving players from both teams," Jon Runyan, NFL vice president of football operations, wrote in a letter to Evans regarding his suspension. "Your aggressive conduct could have caused serious injury to your opponent and clearly does not reflect the high standards of sportsmanship expected of a professional."
Evans is the only player suspended, and all other players involved may be fined.
The one-game suspension is the same punishment he received in 2017 when he and Lattimore were involved in a similar altercation.