Mel Kiper expects Buccaneers to select a QB in the 1st Round of the NFL Draft

by JScott on Feb 11, 2009 9:18 PM EST in News Comment 15 comments

Word is ESPN.com's draft expert in Mel Kiper expects the Buccaneers to select a Quarterback in the first round of April's NFL Draft. Trading up for Georgia's Matt Stafford? Uh no... USC's Mark Sanchez falling to us? Not likely. No Kiper expects the Bucs to draft Kansas State QB Josh Freeman. Josh who?

Josh Freeman Scouting Report via SBNation's Mocking the Draft:

Josh Freeman

6'6, 250 pounds | Kansas State | Quarterback

Strengths: Incredible arm strength. Can make just about any deep throw. Puts a nice touch on passes and knows when to take some heat off throws. Great size and can take a hit. Never had the best offensive line protecting him and was pressured frequently. Showed during his junior season that he can be mobile rushing for 14 touchdowns. Cut down on his interceptions ever season but still needs to improve his decision making. Played in a pro-style offense, albeit mostly from the shotgun.

Weaknesses: Not quite ready to be a starting NFL quarterback because of his lack of technique and proper footwork. Rarely steps into his throws. Holds the ball too low when he drops back which nullifies any kind of quick release he would have. Deep accuracy is somewhat questionable. Took the majority of his snaps from the shotgun. Struggles when he has to throw on the move.

Final word: Freeman is an incredibly intriguing prospect. He has a powerful arm and good touch. However, he is very mechanically flawed and will need a patient quarterbacks coach. Threw 34 interceptions in 35 career games, which is troublesome. Still, some team will fall in love with his physical tools. At times his play is reminiscent of Ben Roethlisberger, but he's been too inconsistent to chance a first-round pick on.

Round projection: 2

I'm almost completely inclined to give Mel a pass on this suggestion as he had no idea the Bucs would bring QB Luke McCown back at the salary cap number they did ($7.5 million). The Bucs drafting a QB in this draft at any point scares the mess out of me. First of all, we have Freeman's accurate clone in Josh Johnson. Did you see that number up there? 34 interceptions in 35 games? My goodness he sounds like a Trent Dilfer redux. I realize the accurate Josh on the roster isn't Jags guy, but they should at the very least see what they have in him and McCown before they spend a 1st Round Draft Pick on a questionable QB. Secondly the guy appears to be ultra raw, with a first round draft pick we need a player that can't can immediately contribute. Freeman's not that guy. Coming off a draft in which four of our seven picks contributed nothing we must make the best of our first day picks.

It's way to early to say which direction the Bucs will go in, but at this point the Quarterback position doesnt feel like an area that needs attention come April. At this point we might as well see what we have in McCown and Johnson with a small eye planted firmly on next year's crop of potential QB Draft picks (McCoy, Bradford)... In the end if the Bucs did draft Freeman or somebody else at the QB position, so be it, this Coaching Staff has my faith for the time being..

Check out the video below for a glimpse of Freeman's play style:

Poll

With Luke McCown, Brian Griese, and Josh Johnson on the roster already, would you mind if the Buccaneers Drafted a QB?

No problem with it at all, stock pile 'em

19 votes

Yes, we have enough unknowns at QB

48 votes

I'm indifferent, but would be shocked if they did

18 votes

There's a certain Veteran that just retired, his name rhymes with Mavre, maybe he can be coaxed to play in Tampa!

5 votes

90 votes | Poll has closed

0 recs | Comment 15 comments | Share

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Favre???

No!!!!!

Cannons... fire them.

www.BucEm.com - SBNation's home for discussion of all things regarding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

by Craig T on Feb 11, 2009 9:25 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

lol

just making sure you are paying attention

Buc 'Em Your SBNation Tampa Bay Bucs Blog where Dull Boys are not allowed!!

by JScott on Feb 11, 2009 9:47 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Boo to Kiper saying we should draft a QB in the 1st round, especially saying we should draft Freeman. It's like drafting Josh Johnson all over again. No Thanks.

And definitely no to Favre. I said yes last year but this year no dice.

by TheUltimateBucFan on Feb 11, 2009 9:32 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

my bad, I shouldnt compare Johnson to Freeman. There stats are not even close

Freeman did almost have 500 passing yards against Oklahoma. Pretty impressive. Here’s his stats:

Stats Overview Passing
YEAR CMP ATT YDS CMP% YPA LNG TD INT SACK RAT
2006 140 270 1780 51.9 6.59 80 6 15 25 103.45
2007 316 499 3353 63.3 6.72 68 18 11 17 127.26
2008 224 382 2945 58.6 7.71 77 20 8 15 136.48
2008 Regular Season Game Log Passing Rushing
DATE OPP RESULT CMP ATT YDS CMP% LNG TD INT RAT ATT YDS AVG LNG TD
8/30 North Texas W 45-6 18 24 232 75.0 43 3 0 197.45 5 23 4.6 8 2
9/6 Montana State W 69-10 16 21 288 76.2 70 2 0 222.82 5 35 7.0 18 2
9/17 @Louisville L 38-29 22 42 313 52.4 59 3 2 129.03 3 18 6.0 8 0
9/27 Louisiana-Lafayette W 45-37 21 28 272 75.0 53 3 0 191.95 9 37 4.1 15 2
10/4 Texas Tech L 58-28 13 28 170 46.4 33 1 0 109.21 7 13 1.9 5 2
10/11 @Texas A&M W 44-30 21 26 234 80.8 32 0 0 156.37 18 95 5.3 15 4
10/18 @Colorado L 14-13 20 41 237 48.8 30 0 0 97.33 7 42 6.0 22 1
10/25 Oklahoma L 58-35 29 51 478 56.9 77 3 3 143.24 13 23 1.8 13 0
11/1 @Kansas L 52-21 22 37 207 59.5 25 0 3 90.24 9 27 3.0 29 0
11/8 @Missouri L 41-24 18 36 121 50.0 25 0 0 78.23 14 56 4.0 14 1
11/15 Nebraska L 56-28 7 18 114 38.9 63 1 0 110.42 6 -27 -4.5 11 0
11/22 Iowa State W 38-30 17 30 279 56.7 44 4 0 178.79 11 62 5.6 19 0

by TheUltimateBucFan on Feb 11, 2009 9:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I can't help but think we'd be reaching big time...

…if we took Freeman at #19. Wasn’t our 2008 draft the year of picking guys higher than they should’ve gone? Let’s not repeat the cycle.

Buc 'Em - A Tampa Bay Bucs Blog
The Bull Gator - USF Bulls, Florida Gators, College Football, and More...

by The Bull Gator on Feb 11, 2009 10:08 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

true

he would have to have a freak nasty combine to warrant the reach…

Buc 'Em Your SBNation Tampa Bay Bucs Blog where Dull Boys are not allowed!!

by JScott on Feb 11, 2009 10:39 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

precisely

I’m also worried about media and personnel directors overhyping good but not great players in an attempt to find the next Joe Flacco/Matt Ryan stud.

Cannons... fire them.

www.BucEm.com - SBNation's home for discussion of all things regarding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

by Craig T on Feb 11, 2009 11:09 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Freeman will still be there...

IF, and i mean IF we grab Freeman, it should be in the second round, odds are he’ll still be there… if not, its not a big loss.. but to take him at 19 is pure folly.

by ghosthippo on Feb 12, 2009 12:06 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Agree...

Freeman will likely be around later in the draft, not that I would take him later on either (well maybe 4th round or later). This is not to knock on him but we have larger needs that can likely be filled with immediate impact players. IMO no 1st round draft pick should be a raw/taltent/project, 1st round picks get paid 1st round money to provide 1st round impact in their 1st year.

by angecorrado on Feb 12, 2009 7:52 AM EST up reply actions 0 recs

A lot of what we do in the draft may depend on the Detroit Lions

If Detroit doesn’t take Stafford with their first overall pick, then they may look into taking Freeman with their other first round pick or with their second round pick. If they do take Stafford, I think that Freeman could slide to our second round pick. Freeman has great upside, but it will take some great development by Jags to overcome his biggest problem, inconsistency. At times, Freeman looks like a rock star, but at others he looks completely lost.

Blake
USF--Class of '09

by usfraysfan on Feb 12, 2009 2:51 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs