Mike Evans says he learned his lesson by starting fights with Marshon Lattimore. Past feuds with the New Orleans Saints cornerback have cost the Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver dearly: more than $100,000 in fines, an expulsion, two different one-game suspensions and a lifetime ban from a New Orleans barbecue restaurant.

Still, it remains a spirited rivalry, and Evans said he’s taking the high road. That doesn’t mean he isn’t looking forward to scrapping Lattimore as long as their teams remain opponents in the division.

“As long as it’s in the play,” Evans told Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. “I’ve done a bad job in the past of making it about the game when it shouldn’t have been. But I’m more mature now and our team is focused on playing the winning ball, and you can’t play the winning ball. ” if you get kicked out and stuff like that.”

Evans added that while you want to bring fire, energy and passion to the game, that doesn’t prevent you from acting irrationally and hurting your team. That’s a balance he’s struggled with in the past, and it doesn’t help that Lattimore consistently shuts him down. Evans has had a great career. He has averaged 4.9 catches and 75.2 yards per game over the years. But in a dozen previous games with Lattimore, he’s had five or more receptions just once, while beating that distance average just twice.

“But I definitely want to have that fire and be physical and a little bit of chirping never hurts. But you definitely have to be smart,” Evans added.

There’s a lot to be said for letting your hands do the talking, but Evans would be better served catching passes rather than throwing punches.

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This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Mike Evans says he’s grown past feud after eviction, suspensions and restaurant ban