The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were chased off of their practice field by lightning on Monday, but Bucs wide receiver Vincent Jackson unleashed a lightning bolt of his own, according to beat writer Roy Cummings of the Tampa Tribune.
Cummings posted Monday on his Twitter account (@RCummingsTrib), "Bucs WR Vincent Jackson says Josh Freeman is one of the five best QBs in the league - right now."
This is an argument that could conceivably have been made a year ago, coming off of a 2010 season that saw Freeman complete 61.4 percent of his passes for 3,451 yards, 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions for a 95.9 passer rating, the sixth best in the NFL behind Tom Brady, Philip Rivers, Aaron Rodgers, Michael Vick and Ben Roethlisberger. Last season was a different story, though, as Freeman had more interceptions (22) than touchdowns (16), and his passer rating dropped to 74.6, 26th in the league and behind such leading lights as Matt Hasselbeck and Mark Sanchez.
Freeman, to his credit, looked strong during limited minutes in the Bucs' preseason win over Miami on Friday, completing four of his five passes for 41 yards, and with the guidance of new offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan - formerly the quarterbacks coach of the New York Giants - Freeman should have the opportunity to truly tap into his potential as a signal-caller in the NFL. He's not there yet, though. It's hard to fault Jackson for talking up a teammate, but for now, this is just talk...or is it?
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