Jerrell Freeman has been the best inside linebacker in the NFL for the last two years and he’s been overlooked, which is something he’s struggled with his entire career.
When you listen to people discuss the best players on the Chicago Bears you’re likely hear names like Kyle Long, Jordan Howard, Josh Sitton and Pernell McPhee. All those players would be mentioned before you heard somebody say Freeman’s name. There’s seemingly a reason for that, and it all started back in the 2008 draft.
After choosing to attend a Division III school and play for the Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders, Freeman went undrafted as the final picks of the ’08 draft were completed. Shortly after Mr. Irrelevant’s name was called, Freeman reportedly received a call and was signed by the Tennessee Titans. The former D-3 Defensive Player of the Year was unfortunately cut by the team prior to the start of that season.
So off to the Canadian Football League he went. While playing for the Saskatchewan Roughriders he rose to greatness after three seasons and led the CFL in tackles in 2011. On January 16, 2012, Freeman announced that he had signed a contract with the Indianapolis Colts.
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You’re never gonna guess what happened after that ….
In Week 1 against the Chicago Bears, Freeman returned a Jay Cutler interception for a touchdown in the first quarter and never looked back. After intercepting Cutler in his first NFL game, Freeman went on to play for Indianapolis for four seasons setting the franchise record for tackles in 2012 and again in 2013.
After there was a report the Colts made a substantial offer to keep him, contract negotiations went south and Freeman reportedly fired his agent and hired Drew Rosenhaus to gauge the market and maximize his value. There was rumored to be major interest from Atlanta and Chicago, but after a trip to see the Bears Freeman returned home with a three-year contract for $12 million.
The first player in Mary Hardin-Baylor University history to make it to the NFL, Freeman expected to get more money after averaging 119 tackles per season in Indy for more than a couple of seasons. Instead he’s currently the 52nd highest paid linebacker in the NFL today.
You see, Freeman was apparently overlooked in high school after attending a D-3 University. Then overlooked once again when going undrafted in 2008. The cherry-on-top was his failed negotiations with the Colts and never truly cashing in on his free agent status.
So, you’d think after coming to Chicago that would all go away right? Not exactly.
After starting the season as one of the best players on the team, in the league, Freeman watched fellow inside linebacker Danny Trevathan go down with a season-ending injury shortly after he was busted with PEDs and suspended four games. Shit happens.
Here’s the part that really sucks for Freeman though. Other than making a mistake, serving his suspension and losing a shit load of money in the process, Freeman held himself back from reaching that level of greatness he’s been working so hard to achieve.
Before getting to that though, there’s this. Freeman would have stayed in Indianapolis had it not been for the extra incentives Chicago reportedly offered on their contract. Those incentives were based on the percentage of snaps Freeman played, had to be over 70% with another bonus for being over 90%. Again, he missed four games so he definitely didn’t hit the 90%, even though he was on track to before the suspension.
In addition to all that, Freeman’s mistake came back to haunt him the most at the end of the year. On the field Freeman is an absolute tackling machine and still had 110 tackles (only 24 assisted) in 12 games for the Bears this year. Project that over 16 games it would have been in the 145-150 range landing him in the top five in the NFL. Add that to his #1 overall grade of 93.8 for linebackers in 2016 and he’s flirting with an All-Pro selection.
Unfortunately that never happened because Freeman was suspended for PEDs.
Did I mentioned that he’s never been to a Pro Bowl?
Yes, after becoming one of the best defensive players in Colts history Freeman was never voted in. Talk about being overlooked.
Do you see why that PED suspension was so important now?
After fighting up through a small college, the CFL, Indianapolis and finally earning his way to Chicago, Freeman had an opportunity to become a first-time Pro Bowler and a possible All-Pro but he held himself back. Instead he watched Luke Kuechly and Bobby Wagner get voted in after they finished #2 and #3 behind Freeman in Pro Football Focus’ final grading of the season. Their grading doesn’t factor in penalties for missing games, meaning if Freeman would have been on the field he likely would have been the first one voted into the Pro Bowl as well for that group.
Everyone in the NFL is trying to get paid, but all players are looking for respect. After going undrafted and making less than $100k more than first-round pick Leonard Floyd in 2016, Freeman squandered his chance to finally get the designations that would’ve moved him into the elite category.
He might be the best overall player on the Bears right now, but Freeman will have to wait at least one more year before he’s formally recognized as one.
