Bucs should keep the game in Freeman's hands Joe Henderson, The Tampa Tribune, published 20 December 2010 I believe we all can agree that Josh Freeman is the key to the Buccaneers' offense. Even though you can't expect No.5 to make a miracle every time, it's probably sound strategy to work your plans around him whenever the game is in the balance. Any problems so far? With that in mind, we take you to Raymond James Stadium on a gray, chilly Sunday afternoon. Freeman led the Bucs to Detroit's 15-yard line in the late stages of a tie game. He had completed three of four passes for 41 yards on that drive. When the clock went under two minutes, though, Bucs coach Raheem Morris made a decision that could haunt the Bucs all winter. He took the game away from Freeman. He took the game away from the best thing about the Bucs, even though his defense is held together with duct tape and Elmer's glue. Instead of staying on the attack, Morris called for three runs — designed to bleed the Lions of timeouts — and settled for a field goal. We know what happened next. The Bucs never got the ball back. The Lions tied the game with a field goal at the end of regulation, then won it with another 3-pointer in overtime to complete a 23-20 upset that, well … I'm not sure how a loss could be more devastating. "I can second-guess myself (today) when I go back and look at it and try to win that thing with Free," Morris said. Or he could do it now and avoid the holiday rush. This is second time in game-winning situations that Morris put his faith in something other than his quarterback. A win at Atlanta a few weeks ago was there to be had but Morris gave the ball to rookie LeGarrette Blount instead of Freeman. Now this. A game they should have won turned into the kind of loss from which teams with playoff aspirations don't usually recover. At 8-6, they're holding onto the ledge so tightly that blood has stopped flowing to their fingertips. "I know our next game is as important as any the rest of the season. We've got two left; we're still in our race to 10," cornerback Ronde Barber said disconsolately. "What we do after that probably doesn't depend on us at this point, and that's what's most disappointing." We know about the injuries on defense. Aqib Talib, Gerald McCoy and Quincy Black have been sidelined for the season. There are enough new bodies in place that team meetings have turned into meet-and-greets. The only thing missing has been those "Hello, My Name Is …" nametags stuck on the front of their jerseys. The best way to help that defense is to score as many points as possible. Yes, the offense has been hit with key losses, too, and Freeman had been sacked three times, but he was doing just fine overall — 21 of 32 for 251 yards. And we know the fourth quarter is his special time. Why not roll with that? Freeman, as is his way, said he agreed with the decision. Morris never needs to worry if No.?5 has his back. "I thought we played it right, honestly," Freeman said. "If we would have tried to throw the ball, and they would have broken it up or something else would have happened, we would have kicked a field goal. "They would have gotten to the 2-minute drive with a little more time on the clock, and with the timeouts. Everyone would be saying, 'Why didn't you guys just run it?' I feel like it was a good call." The strange thing is, the Bucs have gotten this far by being anything but conservative. Offensive coordinator Greg Olson sometimes is so bold, it's like he's making plays up in the dirt. Freeman already had completed six passes for 96 yards and a touchdown to Mike Williams. Kellen Winslow had four catches and an apparent touchdown earlier in the fourth quarter wiped out by a controversial offensive pass interference penalty. These are pretty good options. Morris just chose not to use them. "The coaches know what they're doing. They're NFL coaches for a reason," Blount said. "We thought (a field goal) would be enough at the time. Obviously, it wasn't." Obviously. It just wasn't obvious when it needed to be.