OPINION: All signs point to Freeman being a success

There is a difference between going out on a limb and making an educated guess based on evidence available to   you. I was on the pirate ship for Josh Freeman’s debut as Bucs starting QB. From the very beginning he had that poise that won a lot of people over. By halftime, I remember saying to myself that the Bucs had a legit shot at this game because Freeman looks like the real deal, and that he was going to give the Bucs a chance where they had none before. The second half was downright remarkable coming from a rookie, he looked off receivers, he rolled out, and it seemed like every time he dropped back to throw the ball something good happened. He hit Stovall, he  hit Clayton even! Stroughter looked good, the whole team looked different when he took over the game. Isn’t that what a franchise Quarterback is supposed to do when you have one? Doesn’t he make the whole team better? Didn’t Doug Williams make the whole Bucs team better when he was in the Game? Can the same be said about Trent Dilfer circa 1999? No not really huh? This isn’t to say I’m going to go Dennis Green and crown his you know what; because he has things to work on in year two of Tampa Bay AF (After Freeman)- Stop staring down receivers, stop throwing interceptions, you know, all the things great Quarterbacks do when they are young. Freeman isn’t the only one. Peyton Manning did it, he led the league in picks in 1998, Terry Bradshaw had his roadblocks on route to 4 SuperBowl rings on his non-thumb digits! In the old days, those players simply came to training camp to, well, train, to get into shape. You got to camp, and that is where you got into playing shape. The offseason was just that, OFF time. Not anymore, too much competition among athletes, and now offseason OTAs keep players in shape year round. Where was Josh Freeman this offseason? Right here at One Buc Place studying film, practicing and working out. This is why I feel comfortable saying that Josh Freeman is going to be the Real Deal one day, and that day may come sooner than anyone thinks.