Raiders Notes: Josh Freeman, Terrelle Pryor, Menelik Watson

 

Josh Freeman

During a chat session on Tuesday, Scott Bair of CSNBayArea mentioned that he believes Josh Freeman could be under center as the Raiders starting quarterback in 2014.

This idea was floated Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com a little over a week ago, so it appears as though this could be something to watch during free agency.

Gutierrez mentioned that Freeman’s best seasons in the NFL have come under current Raiders OC Greg Olson who was with him in Tampa Bay.

Freeman is coming off of a tumultuous season to say the least. After essentially being run out of Tampa Bay, Freeman signed on with the Minnesota Vikings, but only made one start and was atrocious during that game. Freeman never saw the field after that and report later came out that he had suffered a concussion during that game.

It’s unlikely that Freeman will find a lot of interest on the open, even though this year’s class of free agent quarterbacks is limited. If the Raiders are looking for value, I can see why they would consider taking a chance on Freeman.

Olson knows what he’s getting with him as he offers great size and knows their offensive system. He’s still only 26, so it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that he could turn things around at some point.

Terrelle Pryor

Sticking with notes from Scott Bair‘s chat session, it sounds like the Raiders do not view Terrelle Pryor as a candidate for their starting job next season.

“I think it’s possible Pryor isn’t on this team come training camp,” writes Bair. “It’s very clear Pryor doesn’t have a future as a QB here.“

It’s worth mentioning that the Pryor was the last Al Davis pick, which means GM Reggie McKenzie could be prepared to move on completely and look to bring in new options at the quarterback position.

Pryor showed some flashes of being a decent player last year, but losing the job to undrafted free agent Matt McGloin is hardly the most marketable distinction to have.

It will be interesting to see if Pryor’s name surfaces as a potential trade candidate this offseason.

Menelik Watson

The Raiders used a second-round pick on LT Menelik Watson who is raw prospect, but many feel as though he could develop into a very talented blindside defender.

However, it sounds like the team may already have concerns ability his ability to develop into even a serviceable player.

“There is concern from this coaching staff that Watson might not have it,” Bair writes. “Tough to tell when the guy’s barely practiced.“

The Raiders will have a staggering $60 million plus in cap space available to them this offseason, so it would make sense for them lock up LT Jared Veldheer and look for upgrades in the free agent market if they really have concerns about Watson moving forward.

McKenize may have done a decent job of cleaning up their finances but his draft strategy has yet to pay dividends and could ultimately be his downfall if these guys continue to struggle.