Freeman running workouts since March

[Guest jb aka johnnybuc]

Josh Freeman running Bucs' workouts

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By Pat Yasinskas

ESPN.com

ArchiveWhenever the National Football League's lockout ends, Josh Freeman pledges the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be ready.

In only his third NFL season, Freeman told ESPN.com on Monday that he has been organizing team workouts since late March.

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"You have got to be up to speed and be ready to go out and win football games and we're taking steps right now to be in a position like that," Freeman said after leading a workout in the Tampa Bay area.

Freeman admitted the workouts haven't been the near-minicamps that some teams have had, but said the Bucs have had steady participation and sometimes had more than 20 players gather for a session.

"We're trying to stay together as a team and keep working on things. We watch some film and talk over plays and stuff like that just do the stuff a football team should be doing," Freeman said.

Only 23 and coming off his first full season as a starter, Freeman said it's his duty to organize the team during the protracted work stoppage.

"As the quarterback, you're the leader of the team," Freeman said. "Guys like (backup quarterbacks) Josh Johnson and Rudy Carpenter and I, we take a lot of pride in ourselves as quarterbacks to be leaders at all times. We shoot the calls out and let everybody know where we're going to be at and when we're going to be there so we can get as much work together as possible."

Tampa Bay finished 10-6 in 2010, narrowly missing the playoffs and Freeman said the Bucs want to make sure they continue to progress when the season begins.

"It's hard to get everybody free and their schedules lined up," Freeman said. "But, at the same time, we want to provide options for guys to get down here and work out. Everybody knows we're a young team and we had a lot of momentum coming off last season. We want to build on that and keep that going."