Lee Evans III (born March 11, 1981) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

wide receiver in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL). He was drafted by the

Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

in the first round (13th overall) of the

2004 NFL Draft The 2004 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 24–25, 2004 at the Theater at ...

and also played for the

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. As the highest drafted receiver for the Bills since

Eric Moulds Eric Shannon Moulds (born July 17, 1973) is a former American football wide receiver who played 12 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Mississippi State Bulldogs, Mississippi State University and was draf ...

, Evans emerged as a dangerous deep threat for the team. He still ranks among the top five receivers in Bills history in terms of receptions, yards, and touchdowns, despite never making the

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

Early years

Born in Bedford, Ohio, Evans attended Bedford High School in

Bedford, Ohio Bedford is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States located to the east of Cleveland. The population was 13,074 at the 2010 census. It is an eastern first ring suburb of Cleveland. Geography Bedford is located at . It is a first ring subu ...

, a suburb located southeast of

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. Evans was also a high hurdler, with personal-bests of 13.59 seconds in the

110 metres hurdles The 110 metres hurdles, or 110-metre hurdles, is a hurdling track and field event for men. It is included in the athletics programme at the Summer Olympic Games. The female counterpart is the 100 metres hurdles. As part of a racing event, ten hur ...

and 37.32 seconds in the 300 metres hurdles.

College career

2000 season

Evans caught 30 passes for 528 yards and 5 touchdowns in his freshman season at Wisconsin.

2001 season

Lee Evans put together an incredible season despite having three different quarterbacks (

Brooks Bollinger Brooks Michael Bollinger (born November 15, 1979) is a former American football quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the New York Jets, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions. He also was a member of the Florida Tusk ...

Jim Sorgi James Joseph Sorgi Jr. (born December 3, 1980) is a former American football quarterback. He played college football at the University of Wisconsin and was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. Sorgi served as ...

, and Matt Schabert) during the year. Evans caught 75 passes for 1,545 yards (an average of 20.1 yards per reception) and 9 touchdowns.

2002 season

Evans tore his ACL in the Spring Game and missed the entire season.

2003 season

In Evans's last year at Wisconsin, the star receiver put together a season to remember for the Badgers. He caught 64 passes for 1,213 yards and 13 touchdowns. Possibly his finest game as a Badger came in a 56-21 blowout of the Michigan State Spartans: Evans caught 10 passes for 258 yards and 5 touchdowns.

Professional career

2004 NFL Draft

The Buffalo Bills selected Evans with the 13th overall pick in the first round of the

. Lee was the first wide receiver since

in 1996 to be taken by the Bills in the first round.

Buffalo Bills

Evans was initially assigned the jersey number 84. Evans, as a reference to his full name, had always worn the number 3 in college, a number that was not allowed to be used in the National Football League for wide receivers. At that time, receivers and tight ends were only allowed to wear uniform numbers 80-89. Evans, in order to include the number 3 somewhere in his jersey number, instead chose 83, which required special permission; the Bills had set aside the number after the retirement of former Bills great Andre Reed. The Bills' first-round draft pick moved into the starting lineup in his first season and emerged as one of the Bills' best players on offense. He caught 48 passes for 843 yards and 9 touchdowns as a rookie. The nine touchdowns remains a Bills rookie record. During a game between the Bills and

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team pla ...

on December 4, 2005, Evans faced off against his former teammate on the

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin). They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivisi ...

Chris Chambers Christopher J. Chambers (born August 12, 1978) is a former American football wide receiver who played 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers football, University of Wisconsin. He ...

. Evans set then career highs with receiving yards (117) and touchdowns (3), but Chambers set Miami franchise records for receptions (15) and receiving yards (238) as well as scoring the game-winning touchdown in the final seconds. Evans quickly became a fan-favorite among Bills fans. After the departure of

, he established himself as the Bills' top receiver in 2006 with 82 receptions for 1,292 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns. He became a big ally for then starting quarterback

J. P. Losman Jonathan Paul Losman (born March 12, 1981) is an American football coach and former quarterback. Losman played in the National Football League (NFL) for seven seasons, primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football at UCLA and Tu ...

in the passing game, establishing himself as a deep threat at wide receiver. On November 19, 2006, in a game against the

Houston Texans The Houston Texans are a professional American football team based in Houston. The Texans compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division, and play their home ga ...

, he set the Buffalo Bills record for receiving yards in one quarter (205) and one game (265). He also became the first player in league history to record two 80-yard-plus touchdowns in one quarter when he caught two 83-yard touchdown passes in the first quarter. In a 2007 game against the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

, Evans wrestled a long pass away from Jets rookie cornerback

Darrelle Revis Darrelle Shavar Revis (born July 14, 1985) is an American former football cornerback who played in National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons, primarily with the New York Jets. He played college football at Pittsburgh and was selected in th ...

, which resulted in an 85-yard touchdown reception to clinch the game for the Bills as they won 13–3. Evans underwent minor shoulder surgery in the 2008 offseason. Coach

Dick Jauron Richard Manuel Jauron (born October 7, 1950) is a former American football player and coach. He played eight seasons in the National Football League (NFL), five with the Detroit Lions and three with the Cincinnati Bengals. Jauron served as the he ...

stated that the shoulder had been bothering Evans for the previous two years. The offseason surgery did not seem to slow Evans down in the 2008 season as he recorded his second 1,000 yards receiving season with 63 receptions, 1,017 yards, and three touchdowns, including an 87-yard score from Losman, who had since been relegated to the backup for Trent Edwards. Despite his strong play the Bills missed the postseason at 7-9. The next two seasons were less successful for Evans, as his yardage and touchdown count regressed both years with

Terrell Owens Terrell Eldorado Owens (; born December 7, 1973), nicknamed T.O., is an American football wide receiver for the Knights of Degen of Fan Controlled Football (FCF). He previously played in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons. Regar ...

and later

Stevie Johnson Steven John Johnson Jr. (born July 22, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). Johnson was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draf ...

taking over Evans' role as Buffalo's top receiver. On December 12, 2010, Evans injured his ankle against the Cleveland Browns and was placed on injured reserve, which would be the last time he suited up for the Bills. Evans finished his Buffalo career with the third most receiving yards (5,934) and touchdowns (43) in franchise history, in addition to the fourth most receptions (377), which included six passes that each went for more than 70 yards.

Baltimore Ravens

On August 12, 2011, Evans was traded to the

for a 4th round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. He missed a fair amount of the season with injuries. Evans played in 9 games, and finished the season with four receptions for 74 yards. In the AFC Championship Game, a pass was thrown to Evans in the end zone that if caught, would have likely secured a trip to the Super Bowl for the Ravens. The football hit Evans in the hands, but was knocked out by

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

cornerback Sterling Moore. Two plays later,

Billy Cundiff William Ambrose Cundiff (born March 30, 1980) is a former American football placekicker. He played college football for Drake University, and was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2002. College career Cundiff played for ...

missed a field goal that would have sent the game into overtime, and the Patriots won.

Jacksonville Jaguars

On April 15, 2012, Evans signed a one-year contract with the

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...

. He was released on August 12, 2012.

Retirement

In 2012, after he was released by the

, Evans announced his retirement.

References

External links

*
Buffalo Bills bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Lee 1981 births Living people People from Bedford, Ohio Players of American football from Ohio American football wide receivers African-American players of American football Wisconsin Badgers football players Buffalo Bills players Baltimore Ravens players Jacksonville Jaguars players Sportspeople from Cuyahoga County, Ohio 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American people