Josh Freeman wants to sign by tonight, five teams interested
Josh Freeman (5) warms up prior to a game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports
Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB Josh Freeman is receiving plenty of interest, and five teams are interested with the Oakland Raiders and Buffalo Bills being two teams of note interested. FOX Sports’s Jay Glazer has another big scoop for us, as he reports that Josh Freeman, who told Glazer this himself, would like to sign with a team by tonight, so the hot stove regarding Freeman will be burning until then. Glazer reports that the Oakland Raiders, Buffalo Bills, Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49ers, and Green Bay Packers are among the five teams that have “reached out” to Josh Freeman at this point.
As expected, Freeman told Glazer that he would like to compete for a starting job on his new team, so that immediately rules out the Packers and 49ers. That also rules out the Oakland Raiders, despite their clear interest in adding Freeman as a backup, because they seem, rightfully, content with Terrelle Pryor, who could be the QB of the future there. Matt McGloin probably also has better prospects than Josh Freeman from the Raiders perspective, and the Raiders are just looking for a steady veteran backup to play in case Pryor gets injured again. They are clearly not happy with the job Matt Flynn is doing, and they will even work out David Carr tomorrow.
However, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen did indicate that the Raiders and Minnesota Vikings look like Freeman’s “top two” at this point, and the Vikings, per Mort, are “intrigued” by Freeman. That seems like the most likely destination, as Freeman would definitely have a chance to bring in his big arm and athleticism and compete for the gig with Christian Ponder and Matt Cassel.
The Buffalo Bills are looking for an interim starter with E.J. Manuel set to miss six weeks with a knee injury, but the first-round pick out of Florida State is clearly the Bills QB of the future. Josh Freeman won’t be competing with him, but it will still be interesting to see if anything happens between Freeman and the Bills. I highly doubt it, but we’ll see if he has interest in starting short-term for a Bills team that is looking at all options.
Below are my “grades” for how good of a fit Freeman is for those teams, based on what they want and he wants.
Green Bay Packers: F
San Francisco 49ers: D-
Minnesota Vikings: A-
Buffalo Bills: D+
Oakland Raiders: C
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