Josh Freeman was relegated to the bench this week by Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano, who announced Wednesday that rookie Mike Glennon will start at quarterback against the Cardinals this Sunday.
But according to recent reports, Freeman was lucky to begin the season in Tampa Bay at all.
The Bucs were shopping Freeman even before they used a third-round pick on Glennon in April, a league source told Pro Football Talk, but no teams were willing to meet Tampa Bay’s asking price.
Having not yet secured a promising first-year arm in Glennon, the team reportedly wanted a quarterback included in whatever package it would receive for Freeman. Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times told PFT Live that Carson Palmer, who will line up opposite the Bucs this Sunday, was one of the candidates, and Palmer confirmed Wednesday that Tampa Bay had come calling prior to his trade to Arizona.
“My agent had said that Tampa had been contacting him a lot,” Palmer said on a conference call with Tampa Bay media. “I would have been very excited to be there. Their organization has a lot of good players across the board, but like I said, I’m excited and happy to be where I am. I’m excited about our future.”
According to Stroud, the Bucs will still attempt to trade Freeman, who completed just 45.7 percent of his passes in three consecutive losses, but they now expect only a conditional late-round pick in return.
