Another disappointing season for the Oakland Raiders, who thought they’d at least get a better bearing on who their future quarterback is but failed to get any insight on that either, which means they’ll be looking for someone in free agency or the NFL draft to fill or at least compete for the starting position, with Josh Freeman apparently the likeliest candidate.
Freeman was released by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season after three bad starts and an awful relationship with head coach Greg Shciano, who also lost his job when the season ended. He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings who let him start once, pulling off a terrible start, completing only 37.7% of his passes, averaging only 3.6 yards per attempt.
So is this the man the Raiders want to see start for them? At least compete for the starting job, which has been in flux for quite some time. The Raiders got Matt Flynn to start for them last season, but he was demoted during training camp, losing the first spot to Terrelle pryor. Pryor had some exciting performances as the starting quarterback but his passing skills (7 touchdowns, 11 interceptions) didn’t quite fit the expectations from him, while injuries allowed Matt McGloin to grab the starting spot. McGloin didn’t do better either, and the bottom line is that the Raiders feel like they need a chance, or at least improved competition, in this position once more.
There’s always the draft, in which the Raiders have the 5th pick overall. There are plenty of arguments about who is the quarterback that will be taken off the board first – Teddy Bridgewater or Johnny Manziel, but the Raiders aren’t likely to go with either of them. They did try and sign Josh Freeman last season when he was released by the Bucs, so there’s interest in him coming from Greg Olson, the team’s offensive coordinator, who worked with Freeman in Tampa Bay.
It’s the Raiders, so you never know, but right now, it seems like they’re less inclined to find their next quarterback in the draft and willing to give someone who is one step away from being out of the league another shot at leading a team.