Bucs Closing In On Garcia
Posted By Roy Cummings at Mar 03, 2007 at 12:38 AM
Updated Mar 03, 2007 at 12:43 AM


TAMPA – As tough a blow as it was to watch the Jake Plummer trade blow up in their faces, the Bucs appear to have recovered rather quickly.

Less than 24 hours after they learned that Plummer would rather retire than come play quarterback for them, the Bucs appeared to be on the verge late Friday of signing Eagles free agent signal caller Jeff Garcia.

A source with knowledge of the situation said a deal that would bring Garcia to Tampa would probably happen quickly, perhaps as soon as today.

Garcia spent most of Friday visiting with the Oakland Raiders but after word leaked that the Bucs trade for Plummer had been nullified, Garcia cut short his visit with the Raiders and turned his attention to Tampa Bay.

Garcia’s agent, Steve Baker, would only say late Friday that Garcia “is very interested in the Bucs, but others were speaking in more affirmative tones.

One NFL source with knowledge of the situation said the feeling inside the Raiders camp after Garcia left was that Garcia was headed to Tampa to play for Jon Gruden.

If that proves to be the case it will end a nearly three-year courtship between the two parties that began in 2004.

The two parties nearly merged that year, but the Bucs offer of a $1 million signing bonus forced Garcia to look elsewhere, and he eventually signed with the Browns, who offered a $5.5 million bonus.

Money should not be a problem for the Bucs this time as they have nearly $24 million in cap space. There is also a greater need on the Bucs part.

Coach Jon Gruden has made no secret of his desire to bring in a successful veteran quarterback to push Chris Simms for the starter’s job, and Garcia certainly fits the bill.

Garcia resurrected his career - and the Eagles - last season after taking over for an injured Donovan McNabb and leading Philadelphia to a 5-1 record and the NFC East title.

That achievement and his 95.8 passer rating aside, the Eagles decided not to re-sign Garcia, making him one of the most sought-after free agents on the market.

The Broncos and Vikings also are expected to make bids for Garcia, but Baker has let it be known that Garcia’s wish is to play in Tampa.

“Jeff feels he has multiple good options, but the opportunity to play for Jon Gruden in Tampa is something that really excites him,” said Garcia’s agent, Steve Baker.

“Jon is a coach who Jeff believes has the ability to bring out the best in him. In fact, he feels that by playing for Jon, he has a very good chance of duplicating the success he had with the Eagles in Philadelphia last year.”

Bears Pro Bowler ready to sit out season

Jay Glazer / FOXSports.com


The standoff between Chicago's Pro Bowl linebacker Lance Briggs and the Bears is officially moving to the next stage.

"I am now prepared to sit out the year if the Bears don't trade me or release me," Briggs told FOXSports.com via cell phone Monday. "I've played my last snap for them. I'll never play another down for Chicago again."

Briggs was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent earlier this month but the Bears slapped him with the Franchise tag, which pretty much keeps him as their property for next season at a one-year salary of $7.2 million.

Briggs insists he will not play for a team that will use him for a year and see if he can hold up again rather than reward his two Pro Bowls with a long-term deal.

"People think I can't afford to sit out the year, I can take out loans to get me through that year just fine because eventually I'll have a deal somewhere," he said. "There are things I can do to make sure I'm fine financially if I sit out.

"I can also decide what other course of action I can take as the season gets closer. The Bears have shown I'm not in their long-term plans so if that's the case, I don't want to be here."

Last week GM Jerry Angelo faced the matter with his unhappy linebacker when he said on a conference call, "We have his rights, so he's on our football team. We feel that we're treating him very good. That's a lot of money he's making on a one year-deal. The strain really comes to us in terms of our cap and what we have to do for a one-year deal.

"Most of the times when you franchise a player they don't get traded. We will always listen to anything that we feel will be in our best interest. But when we did this, it was with the intent for him to be a Bear this year."

During the phone call, another interesting reason for leaving arose. Briggs, who is extremely close with the Bears' star Brian Urlacher, wants to run his own show somewhere and knows it can't happen with No. 54 manning the middle.

"I've talked to Brian about it," said Briggs. "I'm a competitor and I want the same thing he has. I've learned a lot from Brian as a player and a leader and I eventually want to be 'the man' somewhere. I want to be like him and have everything put on me too. Obviously I'll never be able to do that there.

"Still, had the Bears made me a long-term offer that I found acceptable, I probably would have sacrificed this desire and stayed. I don't want to be somewhere I'm not wanted long-term."

One of the rotten things about the Franchise tag is that it causes bad blood between players and the team. Briggs has gone from fan-favorite to villain in the course of a month as the always-passionate Chicago fans have taken offense to a guy saying he wants out.

"I see what the fans are saying and it's tough," he said. "They're angry and I want to be able to explain it myself because I love Chicago. There is a whole city of people angry at me all because I want to know where I'll be able to retire and have job security."

Usually in these situations, things get uglier before being resolved. How it moves to the next stage now is anyone's guess.


Would love to get this guy here.......but its an expensive and long shot...