Bucs re-evaluate plans regarding QB Freeman

The Bucs are re-evaluating their plans at quarterback and will consider starting rookie Josh Freeman if he continues to progress in training camp.

Quarterbacks coach Greg Olson said "it's not out of the question,' that Freeman takes the path of the Falcons' Matt Ryan and the Ravens' Joe Flacco and starts as a rookie.

Olson said he met with general manager Mark Dominik, coach Raheem Morris, pro scouting coordinator Doug Williams and other coaches last week and decided they might accelerate Freeman's development.

"We did talk last week, and when I say we, I'm talking about everyone in the building from the GM, the head coach, Doug Williams - other people were involved and we just discussed the Josh Freeman plan,'' Olson said. "We decided we'll go through the summer, we'll go probably a week into training camp and we'll revisited it again...we may expedite what he's doing.

"You know, maybe we get him involved early -- earlier than we thought.''

During the Organized Team Activities and mandatory minicamp, Freeman has been taking third-team reps while veterans Luke McCown and Byron Leftwich battle for the starting job.

The plan has been not to rush Freeman into the lineup since the Bucs first-round pick from Kansas State entered the draft as a junior.

But neither McCown or Leftwich have done enough to distinguish themselves in the off-season. Meanwhile, Freeman has progressed steadily and is making better decisions with the football.

"Early when he first got here, he was forcing the football too much,'' Olson said. "If he can show he's progressing as far as the decision-making goes, then shoot, why not? He's comfortable in there, he throws a great ball, he's accurate and if he's not turning the ball over, then gosh, maybe he will be ready to play.

"He didn't seem nervous in the huddle at all last week and that was a great sign. He made some big throws as well.''

Much of the decision will be based on how well the Bucs play around Freeman. 

"That's a big part of why Joe Flacco had success last year,'' Olson said. "If you can put him in a system where he's got a good offensive line and he has a great weapon at tight end and he has some weapons at wide receiver and we have a good running game, then the quarterback doesn't have to shoulder as much. That's something we want to think about.''

Freeman said he has approached the off-season with the mindset that he wants to play as soon as possible, but understands he has a lot to learn.

"I'm definitely a competitor and I want to play and win the job,'' Freeman said. "But at the same time, I understand that it's about winning football games. It all depends on how well I develop and right now I'm doing everything I can to get in that position to compete.

"It's not my decision as to whether or not I'm going to play. I'm just going to try and give them every reason to play me.''

Bucs coach Raheem Morris, who was the defensive coordinator during Freeman's freshmen year, was asked if he would be surprised if Freeman won the starting job in training camp?

"You know it would be hard for me to say I would be surprised because of all the information I had on him coming in,'' Morris said. "It's no secret I was with him at Kansas State. I've seen his work ethic at Kansas State when he was a freshman and he wasn't a starter. What he tried to do, what he wanted to do, how he works -- things I knew about him that other people didn't. Nothing would surprise me with the kid. We want the kid to grow and mature as needed.

"We've got a national quarterback competition, there's no doubt about that. We're one of the few teams being talked about on NFL Network every night and it's fine, we enjoy it, we embrace it. And it's good that we talk about it. It means the rookie is doing something that we like. He's pushing the envelope. These guys are fighting with him. 

"We'll continue to evaluate this thing throughout training camp. We'll continue to evaluate it throughout the season. We'll continue to evaluate it until Josh Freeman is ready to become our prototypical franchise quarterback.''   

Comments

[Go Rays!]

No matter what the Rays do, no matter how much they win, they'll always be pushed aside in the paper to make room for whatever the Bucs are doing. Oh look at that! Barret Ruud is at mini-camp! Quick push the Rays 6 game winning streak, season high 5 homer game to the side so we can talk about, not training camp, not a regular season game, but mini-camp. YAWN

[OAR]

This is all in thier plans to start him.

[mrjn5]

Hey Go Rays!...this is the BUCS SECTION of the site. If you want to read about the Rays, go to the RAYS SECTION!

[Krutch]

I hate to buy-in to mini-camp hype, but is anyone else cautiously optimistic about drafting Freeman yet?

[ref813]

Baseball sucks. That's why. I'd rather know what's going on with the players in the offseason than keep up with baseball. Baseball is the only sport I know of that is so soft that many players can play into their 40's. Oh, I forgot golf. I don't consider driving to be a sport, even though I watch it over baseball. Only the rare K or the even rarer QB can play past 40 in the NFL. If you prefer minimal action and no contact, please reserve your comments for after stories about baseball.

[Erick]

Baseball does suck. Football will always be ten times as exciting. That said I do love watching the Rays, and only the Rays, but it's not football.

Unless Freeman lights it up in training camp he shouldn't be out there. I have a hard time believing he will do better than Leftwich or McCown.

[OAR]

I even played baseball too and still think it sucks. One of the most boring games. BTW: I liked the old Devil Rays name better. The new logo looks like a "ray" of sunshine.
Back to Freeman and Bucs; I honestly think they want to start this kid. I hope not, but have a funny(sinking) feeling they will.

[big007hed]

If he out plays the other QBs start him, i dont care who the QB is as long as he is the best player during training camp and preseason... Whoever wins out, I just dont want it to be b/c Freeman was drafted in the 1st round

[ref813]

I guess Leftwich and McCown aren't impressing anyone. I already read that they brought Leftwich in because McCown wasn't doing too well. Then, I hear that Leftwich has the advantage. Now, he may get beat out by a rookie. This isn't very good unless Freeman is everything some people thought he could be. I'll believe it when I see it. Leftwich is pretty good when he has protection, which shouldn't be much of an issue when the D can't touch the QB. It could be a really good sign that Freeman might be beating him out.

[Matt H]

If we're going to be a running team and only having the QB throw 9-13 times a game, it shouldn't really matter if they go with Freeman.

But what happens when our D falls apart and we're down 0-14 in the first quarter?

[Jim M.]

Here's the straight dope: Coach Rah has been in love with Freeman since they first met. That's why they inexplicably moved up two spots to draft the kid (completely ignoring his mediocre passing numbers in a pass-happy Big 12, I might add). I'm not a bit surprised they're talking about starting him from jump. It looks to me like our head coach is pretty anxious to prove something. I just hope he proves the nay-sayers and doubters (such as myself) wrong.

[Mr.Fabulous]

Anybody but Leftwich, please God, anybody. I simply cannot and will not root for that guy (and his 57# feet).

[why]

BASEBALL is like watching paint dry....Paid millions to stand there an POSSIBLY be part of a play what a life....

I hope the BUCS prove us all wrong, Coach Raheem has the vision and collective team drive to get them moving this year and not years to come.

[e]

Might as well start him... He's going to be the starter as the season progresses... might as well throw him in there and let him get his reps. I'm still not a Freeman fan, but let's not waste time seeing if he's the future. They should have a good idea by the end of this upcoming season if he's the future or not if they give him significant playing time during the regular season.
e

[CavemanK]

It's gonna be a lonnnnnnnng season.

[CavemanK]

"He didn't seem nervous in the huddle at all last week and that was a great sign."

Didn't seem nervous playing non-contact ball with his own team? That's a great sign? Holy crap we're in big trouble.
My 70 year old mom wouldn't be nervous in that situation.

Like I said...it's gonna be a lonnnnnnnng season.

[Steveo]

More conjecture by Stroud. Ricky....are you going to get your panties in a wad if someone calls you on this as happened with your Marvin Harrison nonsense?

[Dspkable]

Start him at the beginning of the season and bench when he has a slump?
No thanks. I'd rather reserve judgment until at least a pre-season game where the defense is allowed to knock his block off. Then we'll see which QB can make good decisions.

[Itch]

They simply have to do this as they are negotiating his agreement and know he will be paid more than McCown and Leftwich (combined?) and thus have to give him his chance. I do not think it is a given, but it will certainly put some pressure of the other two to step it up. I think if he is the future and he is showing he can step up. Let him.

[Andy]

I wanted to get in on the Baseball is boring sentiment. Football sells in this town not the Rays.

[Andy]

I wanted to get in on the Baseball is boring sentiment. Football sells in this town not the Rays.

[Andy]

I wanted to get in on the Baseball is boring sentiment. Football sells in this town not the Rays.

[Andy]

It is going to be a long season, but we weren't going to win another SB with Gruden. We will take some lumps this year or surprise as a gritty team and make it .500. Byron Leftwich's best days are behind him, but he could be a mentor for Freeman. Luke never looked like more than a back up to me. He started hot like Gradkowski did, but tapered off when defenses game planned for him. 2009 season is about rebuilding. Nothing about the team is championship caliber. Not Defense, not offense, and not special teams. My hope for 2009 is that our new coach installs some toughness back into the team. I hated seeing out team quit last year.

[Andy]

It is going to be a long season, but we weren't going to win another SB with Gruden. We will take some lumps this year or surprise as a gritty team and make it .500. Byron Leftwich's best days are behind him, but he could be a mentor for Freeman. Luke never looked like more than a back up to me. He started hot like Gradkowski did, but tapered off when defenses game planned for him. 2009 season is about rebuilding. Nothing about the team is championship caliber. Not Defense, not offense, and not special teams. My hope for 2009 is that our new coach installs some toughness back into the team. I hated seeing out team quit last year.

[BigBucDaddy]

Hey "Gorays"...I love the Rays too, but in the south, baseball is something you play until football season rolls around. And football season now lasts ALL YEAR LONG! Yeah baby!

[aj]

Baseball does suck. It's even boring to play. The batting cages are pretty cool, but that's about it.

I'm worried about playing Freeman this year. Everyone talks about Ryan/Flacco, but you have to realize that is the exception, not the rule.

An earlier poster mentioned how Grads started. He wasn't ready and got worse the more he played. His confidence got shot and it ended any chance he had of a decent career. You don't want to do that unless you have to.

If McCown and Leftwich aren't impressing, let Johnson and Freeman each play half the preseason and let's see if we have any talent there. But, remember, we aren't even in pads. There's a lot left to learn, can't make any solid judgments just yet.

[DR]

Oh yeah, there is an intense pennant race going on right now with only 90+ games left. If the Rays lose one more game they may be out of it. Who really cares about baseball right now? If the Rays are as good as last year, they'll be battling it out in September.
This article is a concern. The bUcs, unfortunately, have one of the toughest, if not the toughest schedule in football. I think the notion of Freeman starting means he'll be starting after the bye week if they are still winless as they will have nothing to lose. Freeman will get experience against tough teams and if he is as good as they think he is, he'll be just fine with the tough love.

[TheBucStop.Net]

After seeing some of the stories this past few Weeks I knew it was time to get back at it. Do any of you remember A man named Jon Gruden? This man was a genus at offensive strategies yes that is a true statement. In Oakland he coached a team that had it all as far as offense goes

A very knowledgeable QB in Rich Gannon some of the best receivers in the league well to shorten it up one of the best offensive units you could want as a head coach. And still they had trouble grasping his offense it was so complicated. The one thing they lacked was having a Head coach that knew how to work with his players to achieve the ultimate goal in 98 they went 8-8, 99 8-8, 2000 12-4, 2001 10-6 as the Raider’s coach In 2002 the Buccaneers pried him away from Oakland

Jon in his first year as the Bucs Head coach managed to reach the best record the Raiders could muster up. 12-4 And a Super Bowl win but don’t assume that it was Jon’s high powered offense that accomplished this. Because it was not!, The first rule you learn in football is. (Offense’s wins games, Defense’s win championships) I have heard this from coaches from the Pee Wee league up. The 2002 Buccaneer defense is what won Super Bowl XXXVII. And is what got them there.

With that being said i want to get back on track here so this is what was said by him

By Rick Stroud, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Thursday, June 18, 2009

(TAMPA — Start the play clock for quarterback Josh Freeman.

The Bucs are re-evaluating the plans for their first-round pick and will consider starting Freeman if he continues to progress in training camp.

Quarterbacks coach Greg Olson said, “it’s not out of the question” Freeman takes the path that the Falcons’ Matt Ryan and the Ravens’ Joe Flacco took last year and starts as a rookie.

Olson met with general manager Mark Dominik, coach Raheem Morris, pro scouting coordinator Doug Williams and other coaches, and they concluded they might need to accelerate Freeman’s development).

(The plan was not to rush Freeman because the 17th overall pick from Kansas State entered the draft as a junior. But neither McCown nor Leftwich has done enough to distinguish himself.

“Early when he first got here, (Freeman) was forcing the football too much,” Olson said of the 21-year-old. “If he can show he’s progressing as far as the decision ­making goes, then shoot, why not? He’s comfortable in there. He throws a great ball. He’s accurate, and if he’s not turning the ball over, then gosh, maybe he will be ready to play.)

http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/article1011236.ece

This is part of one of the numerous stories out there this week and it will be the first one to get Blown up here! here I go with it.

Excuse Me but did we not just have the OTA’s and just one mini camp I mean don’t we still have a month before Training Camp gets here? And I mean I’m no expert but is not the OTA’s function to work on the fundamentals and Timing of plays and patterns down? And did not Raheem say that it would be in training camp that we would all find out who’s jobs was won.

Well if you listen to our local reporters they seem to differ with that. So I have to ask is this another LIE to the players Raheem? Or is it our reporters are bored with nothing to do but make up stories to get what they want the public to believe or get behind? That is what the past seems to show every year there is always these stories that pop up from there source’s HMMMMMM Lets read a little farther!

OK 1st 17th over all pick that was rushed into by a rookie Head Coach on a Junior who entered the draft early because he knew that in his Senior year there would be a ton of talent to enter the NFL in this draft.

McCown and Leftwich both being seasoned vets knows what the OTA’s are for and will wait till camp starts to show what they are there for. Why take a chance on a injury now and blow it all? Hell there records compared to a rookie that has never played a NFL game is enough for OTA’s. And as for his accuracy well if you don’t have to worry about getting hit I can even be pretty accurate then. Decision making with no real rush coming at him that’s another easy task to check your reads. Wait till the real deal comes for him. (lol) Gosh maybe he wont be ready!

Franchise quarterback.” Huh you remember Jon you know Gruden yeah he had him one as well that played at a real school not Kansas state. In 2006 Chris Simms went down with a spleen injury Jon had two veteran QBs (like Morris does) Luke McCown and Tim Rattay. But Jon decided to go with a rookie instead. His reasons being that this man was a very mobile quarterback who keeps defenses honest with his ability to throw on the move, step up in the pocket and throw with touch or roll out, tuck the ball and race down the sidelines in order to move the chains. He is the unquestioned leader of the team and well-respected throughout the industry for his character, leadership and poise. The Seton-LaSalle High School product was the latest standout quarterback to play in that prep conference, which also featured the likes of such greats as Johnny Lujack, George Blanda, Joe Namath,Terry Hanratty, Joe Montana and Dan Marino.

All of those quarter-backs’ passing statistics were surpassed by Bruce, earning All-State22 Team” honors from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in his junior and senior seasons. Hit on 188 of 327 passes (57.5%) for 2,978 yards and 30 touchdowns as a senior. That passing yardage total was the most in the conference’s 87-year history. He threw for 1,630 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior and was named first-team all-conference. Like Raheem, Jon thought he could handle being rushed into service as well. Yes Bruce Gradkowski where is he now? source www.bucpower.com

Fact yes Freeman threw for 8,078 yards in his college career. Fact he threw 44 Touchdown passes but he attempted 1,151 passes doing it which by the way he only completed 680 of them. He also threw 34 INT’S and 44 TD’s that’s a average of .77 Int’s for each TD and to add to that is only a 57.9% completion ratio.

He was also sacked 57 times resulting in a loss of yards. Gee you would think by then he would have learned to throw the ball away. Christ Vinny Testaverde did better than that. Bruce Gradkowski had a better record in college. So what does this man love that Morris has for Freeman have backing it Bruce outdid in two years what Freeman could not do in three years against teams with a lot better defense’s than Kansas played.

So take those party hats off and if you go down to Winn Dixie and ask for brown paper bags you can still get them there. (sorry Oldschool76 I know you hate hearing that) But our Fans as they call themselves need to know what’s really going on. There is so much more I could say and so many articles to bust. But I think this one is too long already I’m not writing books Tell them to sit back shut there mouths and lets see what Training Camp brings.

This is a great Article by TheBucMan

Will fill my website in when there is some real NEWS