Devonta Freeman Interests Bucs If Contract Is 'Reasonable,' Bruce Arians Says

Adding a veteran running back this offseason would be a logical move for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and one player they have their eye on is former Atlanta Falcons halfback Devonta Freeman.

Head coach Bruce Arians said the team would be interested in signing Freeman "if his price tag was reasonable," per Jon Ledyard of the Pewter Report.

"He's asking for a lot of money, and we don't have a lot of money," Arians added. 

Arians also spoke about improving the run game and revealed that the 12 formation (two tight ends, two wideouts, one running back) would be the team's base formation:

Ronald Jones II currently sits atop the depth chart at running back. The 22-year-old had an extremely disappointing rookie season in 2018, rushing for just 44 yards and a touchdown in nine games, though he took a positive step in 2019, registering 724 rushing yards, six scores and 31 receptions for 309 yards. 

Behind him on the depth chart at the moment is rookie Ke'Shawn Vaughn and Dare Ogunbowale. 

Freeman, 28, rushed for 656 and two touchdowns in 14 games last year, his third straight season failing to reach 1,000 rushing yards. While it's fair to question if Freeman's best football is behind him, he also wasn't given 200 or more carries in the past three seasons. 

In the two seasons he has hit that benchmark, he rushed for over 1,000 yards and had 11 touchdowns in each campaign (2015-16). 

So, at the least, he'd be a nice backup for Jones and would give the team a solid one-two punch. If the price is right, that is.