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Josh Freeman is signed, sealed and ready to deliver on his promise as a first-round pick.

The Bucs reached an agreement with Freeman on a five-year contract Thursday night and he signed the deal this morning.

Terms of the contract were not released, but ESPN reported that it is worth $36-million and includes $10.245-million in guarantees.

Freeman, 21, was the 17th overall pick by the Bucs in the NFL draft last April. The Bucs completed the signing of their entire 2008 draft class just hours before players report to training camp today.

Practice begins Saturday morning at One Buc Place with a night workout scheduled at Raymond James Stadium.

Freeman's signing means the rookie from Kansas State will be in camp in time to compete for a starting job with veterans Luke McCown, Byron Leftwich and second-year pro Josh Johnson. General manager Mark Dominik has said the plan is for Freeman to spend his rookie year watching and learning. But quarterbacks coach Greg Olson said the team plans to re-evaluate Freeman one week into training camp to determine whether they should accelerate his development.

By Rick Stroud, Times Staff Writer
Posted: Jul 31, 2009 10:10 AM
Tampa Bay Buccaneers sign quarterback Josh Freeman to five-year deal - St. Petersburg Times

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