The Facts: Following up on a previous item. ... HC Greg Schiano made waves after the season when he suggested Freeman would face competition under center next season. Asked at the time if he was "all-in" on Freeman, Schiano simply said, "I'm not side-stepping you, but I need to evaluate." Two months later -- and with the game film reviewed -- Schiano was more definitive. "Josh Freeman is our quarterback," Schiano told reporters Thursday at the NFL Scouting Combine. "And I believe that Josh Freeman -- with Josh Freeman -- we'll be able to accomplish our goals."

Diehards Line:As NFL.com's Marc Sessler notes, Freeman comes off a season in which he threw a career-best 27 touchdowns, but his evident growth was mixed with too many key turnovers down the stretch. Schiano inherited Freeman -- leading some to believe the Bucs might be open to starting over at the position -- but the coach downplayed his comments from December, saying his "competition" remarks referred not only to Freeman, but to the entire organization -- and even Schiano himself. "At the end of the season, the day after the final game, I probably said something that got a lot more attention than I meant for it to do," Schiano said. But the one thing I believe in, as coaches or players, our whole life, we went through competitive athletics, and that competition is healthy. ..." But that doesn't mean Freeman will actually have to battle to hold onto his starting job (but it also doesn't mean the 25-year old signal caller won't have ample motivation -- he will).