Columns

Garcia's debut a forgettable one

By GARY SHELTON, Columnist
Published August 11, 2007

Coach Jon Gruden, right, talks to quarterback Jeff Garcia, who played in just two series in the Bucs' first preseason game. Garcia completed just one pass in the two three-and-out tries.
	[James Borchuck | Times]

TAMPA - As beginnings go, his could have been better.

Jeff Garcia could have been a little sharper. He could have looked a little more dangerous. He could have worked in a first down or two.

After that, if he had time, would it have been too much to ask for Garcia to serve up a little more hope?

You know, for the skeptics?

One preseason game down, and it is fair to say that Garcia did not resemble a Rescue Ranger. Six plays, and the offense is not fixed. One completion in four attempts, and the cure for 4-12 has not been discovered.

It is hard to say what the Bucs expected from their new starting quarterback in his first dress rehearsal, but it's safe to assume that it was more than this.

Garcia was largely a forgettable figure playing a forgettable game against New England on Friday night. In his Raymond James Stadium debut, Garcia was at quarterback for two series, and both times, the Bucs went three and out. He missed an open Ike Hilliard on third and 6. He had a pass dropped by Joey Galloway on third and 2.

No points.

No first downs.

For those hoping that Garcia will be a better quarterback who will lead the Bucs to a better season, no evidence.

Of course, there shouldn't be any conclusions, either. This was a preseason game. That cannot be stressed enough. As everyone knows, preseason football is more of a fashion show than a game. The performers dress neatly, and they twirl around a lot. In the end, however, it's more important to look good than to compete.

In other words, it wouldn't have mattered if Garcia had been accurate enough to throw darts into hummingbirds. He could have completed seven straight passes - you know, like Luke McCown did - and led his team to two quick touchdowns, and no one would have trusted the numbers. At 37, Garcia knows that as much as anyone.

Still, it would have been nice to see. Given all of the training camp talk about proprioception, it would have been nice to see some third-down receptions. Don't you think?

"Obviously, you want to do better," Garcia said. "You want to complete more balls, sustain a drive. I thought my decisions were fine. It's just a matter of putting the ball where it should be. That's going to come."

That's why Garcia is here, isn't it? He is supposed to be the quarterback that Jon Gruden has yearned for all of these years, the one that finally fits his playbook. He is more experienced than Chris Simms and Bruce Gradkowski, more mobile than Brian Griese and Brad Johnson.

As many problems as the Bucs had during their dismal season of a year ago, you can argue that all began to crumble because of bad quarterback play. How many games did the Bucs have where the quarterback played decently? Three games? Four? Without an efficient quarterback, the running game dissolved and the receivers disappeared and the defense began to wear down. How much better might the Bucs have finished if it had a proven quarterback to hold things together? A quarterback such as, say, Garcia?

Given those expectations, it might have been nice for Garcia to flash a bit of what made Gruden designate him as the starter so quickly.

"It's not far away from coming together and doing some real quality things," Garcia said. I believe that and I know that, and I know that's what it's going to be.

"It's just one of those things where you want to showcase ability and your talent. There's a new stadium, new fans, a new team. Maybe there is more pressure on me to do those sort of things. It's just one of those things where I know it will come together. I have the abilities and the mental aptitude."

It wasn't a total disaster. For instance, Garcia did one thing that a quarterback hasn't done around here for years. He lined up in a shotgun. Yes, he threw an incompletion, but if you have listened to the fans call for the shotgun for years around here, it was a start. Who knows? Next week, maybe it can be loaded.

Then there is this: Garcia didn't break a leg.

Yeah, most of us would have loved to have seen Garcia play more than six plays. On the other hand, Gruden remembers the 2005 preseason when Garcia was the fresh new quarterback for Detroit. Garcia broke his left fibula against Buffalo and missed eight games that year.

Can you imagine that happening here? For the Bucs, there may not be a more vital pair of knees on the team. Really, that's why you have hope for Garcia. Because you don't have any other choice.

When it comes to judging a quarterback's value, that's a good place to start.

[Last modified August 11, 2007, 01:04:33]