Second Chance Comes Quickly for Freeman

When Josh Freeman left the Tampa Bay Bucs, he desperately wanted a second chance as an NFL starter. Now, perhaps quicker than he imagined, he has it.

The struggling signal caller will start for the Minnesota Vikings against the hapless New York Giants on Monday Night Football.

Despite the fact that he only joined the franchise on October 6, Freeman feels he will be adequately prepared for the start. “No question,” he said. “I have a pretty good grasp of the offense. I’ve got three years of college and kind of a mixture the first few years in the NFL with this exact offense, so it’s coming along pretty quickly. At the end of the day, football is football.”

Although the Vikings are looking to Freeman for hope, his recent resume provides little optimism. After consecutive rough seasons in Tampa Bay, he began this season by completing only 45.7% of his passes and throwing for more interceptions than touchdowns. His team and his coach lost faith.

In Minnesota, the hope is that a change of scenery is all that was needed for the still young quarterback who has put together solid seasons in the NFL.

Meanwhile, Freeman’s presence may mean another former first round pick will need a similar transition. Christian Ponder has been benched by the Vikings, and is openly speculating about his future. Matt Cassel, who started the last two weeks, will be listed as third on the depth chart.