The Buccaneers wanted to bring 1st round pick (#17 overall) QB Josh Freeman (out of Kansas State) along slow last season but they couldn’t.  With Byron Leftwich hurting and Josh Johnson failing the Bucs just threw Freeman into the fire.  He played in 10 games for the Buccaneers last season and he completed 159 of 291 passes (54.6%) for 1,857 yards with 10 TD passes and 18 INTs (59.9 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 30 times for 161 yards (5.4 ypc) last season for the Bucs.  If Freeman takes better care of the football he could turn into a really good QB for the Bucs because he has great arm strength and he is a great runner.  The 2nd best pick of the Bucs’ last draft wasn’t until the 7th round (#233 overall) when they selected WR/KR/PR Sammie Stroughter.  He played in 13 games for the Bucs before his season ending with a injury and he caught 31 passes for 334 yards (10.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Stroughter also returned 11 kickoffs for 324 yards (29.5 avg) with a 97-yard TD return.  He also returned 12 punts for 119 yards (9.9 avg) and he made 2 tackles on special teams.  He is a solid all-around football player for the Bucs and he has a bright future for them.  DT Roy Miller was taken in the third round (#81 overall) out of Texas.  He played in 15 games for the Buccaneers last season and he made 33 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 sacks and he defensed 1 pass.  Miller could develop into a starter down the line for the Bucs.  DE Kyle Moore was picked in the 4th round (#117 overall) out of USC and he played in 8 games in which he made 10 tackles and he defensed 1 pass.  OT Xavier Fulton out of Illinois (5th round, #155 overall) spent his rookie season on I.R.  CB E.J. Biggers (7th round, #217 overall) out of Western Michigan did not get on the field as a rookie last year.

GRADE FOR 2009:  C

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  B

The Buccaneers will likely try to bring in a veteran QB to back-up Josh Freeman in 2010.  Freeman played in 10 games as a rookie for the Bucs in 2009 and he completed 159 of 291 passes (54.6%) for 1,857 yards with 10 TD passes and 18 INTs (59.9 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 30 times for 161 yards (5.4 ypc) this year.  Freeman shows a ton of raw talent as he has a strong arm and he’s a really good runner out of the pocket.  Hopefully, Freeman has learned from his many mistakes and he won’t repeat them in 2010.

23-year old Josh Johnson played in 6 games for the Buccaneers this season and he completed 63 of 125 passes (50.4%) for 685 yards with 4 TD passes and 8 INTs (50.9 QB Rating).  Johnson also carried the ball 22 times for 148 yards (6.7 ypc) this year.  It appears that the Bucs are going to try to trade Johnson some time before the NFL Draft in April.

29-year old Byron Leftwich played in 3 games for the Bucs this season and he completed 58 of 107 passes (54.2%) for 594 yards with 4 TD passes and 3 INTs (71.2 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 6 times for 6 yards (1.0 ypc) this year.  Leftwich has now played in 57 games in his NFL career and he has completed 900 of 1,545 passes (58.3%) for 10,218 yards with 58 TD passes and 41 INTs (79.6 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 136 times for 384 yards (2.8 ypc) with 9 TD runs in his career.  I can’t see any way that Leftwich returns to the Bucs in 2010.

The Buccaneers got put in their place yesterday by the Falcons.  Josh Freeman looked like the rookie he is yesterday as he completed 16 of 32 passes for 174 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INT.  Cadillac Williams had a very hard time yesterday getting anything going as he carried the ball 19 times for 40 yards (2.1 ypc) and he also caught 4 passes for 35 yards (8.8 avg).  TE Kellen Winslow (5 rec, 56 yards) and WR Antonio Bryant (2 rec, 15 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Bucs yesterday.  The Buccaneers finished up with only 206 total yards on offense (38 rushing, 168 passing) as they only had possession of the ball for 24:31.

LBs Barrett Ruud (17 tackles) and Geno Hayes (12 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) led the way for the Buccaneers on defense in this game.  Safeties Tanard Jackson (6 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 1 INT) and Sabby Piscitelli (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) as they were also both really active for the Bucs in this game.  The Falcons finished up with 397 total  yards (183 rushing, 214 passing) in this game.  The Buccaneers are now 3-13 on the year.

The Falcons and Bucs are both on two game winning streaks currently.  The Bucs lost 20-17 in Atlanta just six weeks ago so they have to be confident going into tomorrow’s football game.  The Bucs will likely lean heavy on the running game tomorrow against a Falcons’ D that is allowing 111.4 yards rushing and 4.1 yards per carry with Cadillac Williams getting a heavy workload.  Another player who will be busy tomorrow is TE Kellen Winslow against a Falcons’ D allowing 247.0 yards passing per game.  If Josh Freeman doesn’t turn the ball over the Bucs will have a great chance to win tomorrow.

Defensively Barrett Ruud will be busy as the Falcons will likely be running the ball a lot with Jerious Norwood and Jason Snelling due to the fact that the Bucs are allowing 156.5 yards rushing per game this season and 4.8 yards per carry.  The Bucs will need to put pressure on Matt Ryan or he will be playing catch with Roddy White all day long.

PREDICTION:  FALCONS 20, BUCCANEERS 17

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have lost 28-year old DE Jimmy Wilkerson for the season due to a torn ACL.  Wilkerson played in 15 games for the Bucs this season and he made 46 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, he forced 2 fumbles, defensed 2 passes and he had 6 sacks which was second on the team.  The Buccaneers will miss Wilkerson against the Falcons this weekend as he is one of the best pass rushers on the team.