Raheem Morris Fired after Tampa Bay's 10-Game Losing Streak

At the beginning of the 2011 NFL season Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris was one of the most promising coaches in the NFL. One of the few coaches who seemed to be farthest from the hot seat.

And on the second day of 2012, he's now been fired. An almost unthinkable scenario just four months ago.

But that's what a 10-game losing streak to finish a season will do a head coach in these win-now times.

In a statement from the Bucs brass, they thanked him for his service: "We want to thank Coach Morris for all his hard work and dedication as head coach of the Buccaneers," Buccaneers co-chairman Joel Glazer said in a statement.

The Bucs, who are one of the younger teams in the league, hadn't won a game since beating the Saints on October 16th. One of the main reasons they lost their next 10 was the regression of quarterback Josh Freeman. 

Freeman, who was a fan favorite last year, was expected to make the jump to elite quarterback in 2011, but failed to do so, throwing a whopping 22 interceptions, after only tossing 6 to the wrong team last year.

The 2011 Bucs were expected to compete for an NFC South title. But when that faded, it seems Tampa Bay felt they needed to make a change at head coach. What this means for the future of Josh Freeman will come to light at the NFL draft. With a high draft pick and a lot of high-quality quarterbacks in this year's draft,t he BUcs may look to go in another direction. Or they may stick with Freeman.

No replacement has been announced.