The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finally cut their ties with quarterback Josh Freeman on Thursday after weeks of uncertainty surrounding his future with the team.
With the Bucs shelling out $6 million to part ways with the veteran quarterback, Freeman is now a free agent and available to any team willing to take a chance on him.
As expected, when a high-profile quarterback hits the open market under these circumstances, the Oakland Raiders have become potential landing spot for the troubled quarterback. Chris Wesseling of NFL.com talked about the potential candidates for Freeman with the Raiders at the top of the list:
The NFL is about connections. Freeman has one in Oakland with offensive coordinator Greg Olson, who ran the Buccaneers offense during the quarterback’s best seasons. Although Terrelle Pryor has certainly flashed potential, the organization has been skeptical that he will emerge as the long-term solution. At the very least, Freeman could push Matt Flynn off the roster now that coach Dennis Allen has banished general manager Reggie McKenzie’s acquisition to third-stringer.
At this point in time, the Raiders seem ready to part ways with backup quarterback Matt Flynn. Despite pulling off a trade with the Seattle Seahawks for Flynn in the off-season and investing a good chunk of change in the veteran, the team demoted Flynn to third string this week leading to speculation of Freeman being a valid option for Oakland.
Undrafted rookie Matt McGloin is now the new backup quarterback behind starter Terrelle Pryor, but that would change quickly if Freeman was signed.
The fate of Flynn and McGloin hang in the balance if the team is truly interested in bringing in Freeman.
Others teams potentially interested in signing Freeman could be the Green Bay Packers, Cincinnati Bengals, Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns, Tennessee Titans, New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals.