Fantasy Football 2012: Pros and Cons of Drafting Buccaneers QB Josh Freeman

In fantasy football, the quarterback is looked upon by most as a possible game-changer and a position in need of an early pick.

However, there are those who find that other positions require the higher priority and find themselves scrambling for potential sleepers in the fifth or sixth rounds, or perhaps even later.

Should one fall into this category, the fantasy coach in question will undoubtedly find that Josh Freeman is quite a likely option.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneer has posted solid numbers in the past and is therefore capable of great talent, but a poor 2011 for the franchise will certainly warrant the questions being asked of their QB.

As there is with any player pick, Freeman holds his ups and downs, positives and negatives.

In a pro-and-con fashion, here are the reasons why one may or may not want to risk a late-round pick for the 24-year-old.

No NFC South Pressure: Pro

In the NFC South, Freeman falls at the bottom of the quarterback rankings by quite some distance; that much is simply fact.

When compared with the likes of Drew Brees and Matt Ryan, Freeman falls short against his more experienced opponents who have each shown their pedigree for the last four years or, in Brees’ case, even longer.

With Newton, it’s more a matter of the Carolina QB being one of the new kids on the block, and an incredibly prodigious kid at that.

One might feel that with such strong talent in his division, Freeman could easily feel intimidated by the task ahead of him and produce a number similar to the 22 interceptions he threw last year.

However, nobody is expecting the Buccaneers to top their group, taking a heap of pressure off of Freeman’s shoulders.

As a result, the 24-year-old can get along with his business and try to mimic the kind of form he displayed in 2010, where he finished the season with 25 touchdowns.

Brand-New 'Bucs: Con

On the back of last season, the Bucs have been remodeled from near enough top to bottom, and the new team might just yield different results at Raymond James.

That said, a new head coach and new coordinators on both sides of the ball can only mean that a period of team transition is bound to follow.

Freeman may be a regular at Tampa Bay, but it doesn’t change the fact that he, like the new faces among the roster, will have to get used to any changes implemented by the new staff.

Changing management can always go in one of any two ways, and with the offense already in apparent disarray, it isn’t likely to improve by much in the coming campaign.

Debatable Signings: Con

It’s around this time of year that teams usually take it upon themselves to strengthen as is viable and fill in the necessary gaps wherever they may be.

However, it doesn’t seem as if the 2012 draft was facilitated towards helping Freeman all that much in terms of attacking options.

The Buccaneers did bring Vincent Jackson and Dallas Clark in from the Chargers and the Colts, respectively, but neither of the pair seem all that impressive just yet.

Jackson is currently faring better as a Buc with the one catch in preseason, while Clark is yet to catch a single pass.

There might be a wealth of WRs and TEs on the team, but the quality just doesn’t appear there for a major challenge this season.

Disastrous 2011: Con

Moving on from past mistakes is difficult in any sport or competition, and football is no different.

Freeman had a very lackluster 2011 season in which he threw fewer touchdowns than he did interceptions.

That kind of season simply has to play on the mind of someone so young, and while he still posted more than 3,500 passing yards, the No. 5 was far from clinical.

As mentioned earlier, the starlet showed in 2010 exactly what he was capable of.

Now it's just a matter of figuring out whether or not the 2010 season was a one-off.

Mixed Preseason: Con

Whenever spectators comment on preseason, the general consensus is that the games don’t matter, and that come game day, all will fall into place as it should.

Whether these “friendlies” do have any significance or not, there isn’t much that one could take away from the topsy-turvy Tampa Bay preseason if you tried.

In his first preseason fixture against Miami, Freeman actually sat out more of the game than any other QB, throwing 4 for 5 and for only 41 yards.

While it’s common for key players to be rested in preseason, Freeman really needs to be getting as much of a look-in as possible right now in preparation for the new season.

Week 2 went even worse, and the good omens that came with the 20-7 victory in Miami seemed wasted after the demolishing 30-7 loss to Tennessee.

An early TD pass to Mike Williams was soon forgotten after Freeman went on to complete just three out of 10 passes for a total of 21 yards.

Worrying would be an understatement.

Offensive Line Will Protect: Pro

While the Buccaneers’ defense has been porous in recent seasons, its offensive line actually looked promising in 2011.

Greg Schiano’s team gave up just 32 sacks last season so if we were to point out any strengths that the team may have, its O line would have to be one.

The arrival of Carl Nicks only bodes well for the side as well, and the guard should provide some more welcome cover for Freeman to work his game.

The QB completed 63 percent of his passes last season and will be hoping that he gets a similar amount of time when in possession this time around.