Josh Freeman's accuracy thus far

[JDouble]

I am as nervous as anyone because Freeman has obviously looked bad this preseason. After last year's debacle everyone wanted to see him come out and look great and put our collective mind at ease. It didn't happen. However, just because he has looked like poo this offseason and we are all freaked out (some more than others) please stop with the over exaggerated nonsense and the talk that he has never been good. It's ridiculous. Dude has been a baller for us and stat wise, his are all better than Eli Mannings after 3 years (41 games) So take a deep breath and relax. Stressing out won't change anything anyways. Come week one Josh Freeman is going to lead this team for an entire season.

Also, he hasn't thrown anymore short passes than any other starting QB. He is a 60% passer. Don't try to discredit that with claims of short passes and jump balls. It's a garbage claim born from frustration and ignorance.

All he really needs to do to be successful again, is figure out how to quit being stressed out and uncomfortable....and get back to running around and having fun.

[NotDeadYet]

   According to Schiano, not all those errant-looking throws were Freeman's fault; some were timing routes where the receiver didn't go where he was supposed to...
   I do agree some of those throws after the first drive looked like he was trying to take something off them; like he was trying to guide them. He just needs to drop back and throw it!

[ufojoe]

YPA is a very good indicator of a QB's accuracy with respect to deep ball, and I THINK, Freeman's is about 5 YPA through PS anyway.  I've yet to see him throw deep yet this PS,

2011, regular season, he had issues all year.

2012 preseason? I don't give a ****.

and VERY rarely saw him throw deep last season, much less, complete one. 

Watch again.

Freeman, IMO, is a big concern, as far as, a long-term franchise type QB.  He just doesn't seem to have the "it" factor YET.  Hopefully, the light switch will come on, but a large part of his problems seem between the ears, how fast he can process information.  Something, you either have or don't have.  Anticpation of where a reciever will be, also seems a big problem.  He doesn't seem able to "project" where a reciever will be before he makes his cut.

We'll see. I saw some nice, accurate bullets zipped in there last year among his ducks. I'll save my concern for the actual season.

[Blaze688]

Just in case you forgot, Freeman's bad year in 2011 featured some really nice passes...



Cut down on the turnovers this year, make some of those same throws, and we'll be OK on O.

Give me one throw on that video that was as good as his break-two-tackles-drill-the-ball-20-yards-into-the-back-of-the-endzone pass to Clayton in 2009?  Or his 4th down torpedo to Sammie Stroughter against Atlanta in 2010?  Or the perfect lob lead to Briscoe against New Orleans?

That's a video of Freeman making throws that he's supposed to make.  Problem is, he spent 2010 making throws he wasn't supposed to make.  And now I'm starting to wonder if it was a fluke.

[ufojoe]

Wonder all you want. We'll know soon enough.

[alldaway]

That 2011 vidoe doesn't look any different from 2010 or 2009.  People see what they want to see apparently.  The lead highlight of the 2011 video was Freeman scrambling to the right and hitting a target for a big gain. Don't forget the comeback victories of 2011 early in the season either.

[Blaze688]

That 2011 vidoe doesn't look any different from 2010 or 2009.  People see what they want to see apparently.  The lead highlight of the 2011 video was Freeman scrambling to the right and hitting a target for a big gain. Don't forget the comeback victories of 2011 early in the season either.

??

The lead highlight is Freeman throwing a jumper to Mike Williams for a five-yard touchdown.  The second is Freeman rolling right and hitting Benn 13 yards down field (which, by the way, was negated on a penalty).  Then he hits Parker on a six-yard crossing pattern.  The most impressive passes of the whole video came when he nailed Benn on a 42-yard bomb against broken coverage, and the reverse roll out lob to Benn against the Vikings.  Those are about the only snippets of early Freeman we get in that highlight.  The subsequent screen pass, three-yard in route, check down, and screen don't exactly scream "superstar," and those are literally every throw he makes in that 2011 highlight.  Nine passes.  Five of them didn't travel 10+ yards through the air.  Think about that.

Look at the 2010 highlight.  Ask yourself, "Which of these throws could Dan Orlovsky reliably make?" Look at the 2011 highlight.  Ask yourself the same question.

And, uh, comeback victories?  You mean the one he had against the Vikings, that he almost ruined because of a bonheaded throw near the goal line?  I'm a Josh Freeman fan.  At his best, the dude is Daunte Culpepper and Donovan McNabb rolled into one.  But at his worst, he's holding the team back.  I hope he pulls out of the tailspin, but if you're arguing against the obvious regression, then you have forfeited your legs to stand on.

[tatmanfish]

Everyone has their opinion, but frankly, I don't think that the coaching staff has had enough time with Freeman to reverse some of the faults that he got into last season. I'm just not worried yet.

It's pretty clear to me that he's still too worried about throwing interceptions and is being hesitant in pulling the trigger. In 2010, there was little hesitation and more confidence. That lead to 2011, overconfidence and gambling which by the end of the season was a lot of hesitation and little confidence. Eli Manning had the same problem when Sullivan first got him, Manning started out rocky as well.

Also, this is preseason, while the coaches want to win the games, the players are often working on a particular part of their game sometimes to exclusion of others - In this game, I noticed that Freeman was attempting to read defenses better than he did at Tenn, so maybe that was what Sullivan had him working on this week, or maybe not. Either way, I'm not judging Freeman until the end of the season and I refuse to worry about it because it's not as if the Bucs have any other choice at the moment.

Freeman has his flaws, but he's still significantly better than most of the QB's that the Bucs have had behind center in the history of the franchise and he's still young enough to improve.

I believe as his confidence improves, and Sullivans coaching comes more into play, Freeman will continue to improve, but it's going to be a process not a switch (as much as I would love to have it that way).

JMO.

Im glad to see others get it. lol. Its been rare lately.

[Bschucher]

We shall see... there is no question he is the guy this year. I personally have my serious doubts at this point but time will tell. i sure as hell hope I am wrong.

[jhop88]

Through three pre season games Freeman's completion percentage is.........*drumroll*....57.5%

Limited number of attempts yes, but that is near his career average of 60.5%.  Given the Bucs are installing a new timing offense I think Freeman is really close to where he needs to be. 

Conclusion?  I think people fail to understand that the Bucs are starting from scratch with a new offense and defense.  Greg "Rutgers" Schiano is being a bit misleading as to not calling this a rebuilding year, but it is.

In this case, stats don't tell the real story. Did you watch the 1st half against the Pats? Brutal misses on what should've been easy completions.

[blind melon]

Nitey on fire.

Good to see some common sense around here...

[Biggs3535]

Also, he hasn't thrown anymore short passes than any other starting QB. He is a 60% passer. Don't try to discredit that with claims of short passes and jump balls. It's a garbage claim born from frustration and ignorance.

Or it's a claim born from reality:

Freeman attempted 155 passes that traveled under 10 yards in 2009 (53% of his attempts).

Freeman attempted 265 passes that traveled under 10 yards in 2010 (48% of his attempts).

Freeman attempted 361 passes that traveled under 10 yards in 2011 (66% of his attempts).

SUCH ACCURACY.

[Morgan]

The following quotes are from NFL scouts, coaches and front-office personnel, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

• “I think Matt Ryan is a top-10 quarterback. You have the usual suspects — Eli (Manning), (Tom) Brady, Peyton (Manning), (Drew) Brees and (Aaron) Rodgers, but who is the next group? Cam (Newton) is on the rise. (Ben) Roethlisberger is legit. Ryan is as good as (Jay) Cutler and (Philip) Rivers. I am not a (Joe) Flacco fan — I think he’s a panic guy — but he is getting a little better and has become more confident with his game. The Jets don’t have a quarterback. They probably should have taken (Josh) Freeman when they took the boy from USC (Mark Sanchez). As soon as they put word out that he is the ‘Sanchize,’ he started to slide. That is why they got (Tim) Tebow in there — they don’t have a quarterback. The boy from Detroit (Matthew Stafford) is coming on, but I’d still take Ryan over him and a lot of other guys.”http://www.profootballweekly.com/2012/08/26/insider-browns-will-be-looking-for-qb-in-year-or-t

[BucBalla85]

Everyone has their opinion, but frankly, I don't think that the coaching staff has had enough time with Freeman to reverse some of the faults that he got into last season. I'm just not worried yet.

It's pretty clear to me that he's still too worried about throwing interceptions and is being hesitant in pulling the trigger. In 2010, there was little hesitation and more confidence. That lead to 2011, overconfidence and gambling which by the end of the season was a lot of hesitation and little confidence. Eli Manning had the same problem when Sullivan first got him, Manning started out rocky as well.

Also, this is preseason, while the coaches want to win the games, the players are often working on a particular part of their game sometimes to exclusion of others - In this game, I noticed that Freeman was attempting to read defenses better than he did at Tenn, so maybe that was what Sullivan had him working on this week, or maybe not. Either way, I'm not judging Freeman until the end of the season and I refuse to worry about it because it's not as if the Bucs have any other choice at the moment.

Freeman has his flaws, but he's still significantly better than most of the QB's that the Bucs have had behind center in the history of the franchise and he's still young enough to improve.

I believe as his confidence improves, and Sullivans coaching comes more into play, Freeman will continue to improve, but it's going to be a process not a switch (as much as I would love to have it that way).

JMO.

I agree. Great post.

[mrchillwill]

Everyone has their opinion, but frankly, I don't think that the coaching staff has had enough time with Freeman to reverse some of the faults that he got into last season. I'm just not worried yet.

It's pretty clear to me that he's still too worried about throwing interceptions and is being hesitant in pulling the trigger. In 2010, there was little hesitation and more confidence. That lead to 2011, overconfidence and gambling which by the end of the season was a lot of hesitation and little confidence. Eli Manning had the same problem when Sullivan first got him, Manning started out rocky as well.

Also, this is preseason, while the coaches want to win the games, the players are often working on a particular part of their game sometimes to exclusion of others - In this game, I noticed that Freeman was attempting to read defenses better than he did at Tenn, so maybe that was what Sullivan had him working on this week, or maybe not. Either way, I'm not judging Freeman until the end of the season and I refuse to worry about it because it's not as if the Bucs have any other choice at the moment.

Freeman has his flaws, but he's still significantly better than most of the QB's that the Bucs have had behind center in the history of the franchise and he's still young enough to improve.

I believe as his confidence improves, and Sullivans coaching comes more into play, Freeman will continue to improve, but it's going to be a process not a switch (as much as I would love to have it that way).

JMO.

How dare you, how fuc*ing dare you come to this board with your common sense, I now will cast a spell on you that will make you lose your common sense for ALL ETERNITY!!! BIM BIM WALLA BANG!!!