PEWTER REPORT FORUM

Quarterback Jeff Garcia just spoke with the media about his situation, and being removed from the starting lineup. The story is linked below, but here are the highlights from the conversation.

http://www.pewterreport.com/articles/view/4616

“Well I think any time you’re not going to be the guy on the field it is not an easy thing to take in. I’m a competitive guy and I just want to help this team win,” Garcia said. “If that means that I need to focus on getting myself physically right and making sure everything is together, then that is what I need to do. That is what Coach Gruden wants me to do. That is what I am going to focus on and I am going to support my teammates, support Brian [Griese], and just be there and be ready to go. I can’t fight that right now. Right now having only played one game, I would’ve liked to have been given the opportunity to battle through whatever I’m going through. But Coach Gruden made that decision early in the week, so I have to live with it.”


“Well I’ve tried to do my best to put all that (contract squabble, Brett Favre speculation, and injury distractions) behind me. I can’t continue to focus on things that aren’t positive for this team,” said Garcia. “Those things aren’t positive. If I dwell on that then that takes away from whom I need to be for this team. I’ve really tried to redirect my energies into doing good things. I understand in the game on Sunday that there were a couple of plays that I left out on the field. I’m hard enough on myself to know they could’ve been difference makers in the game, and I know that I can turn that around and I can learn from whatever I didn’t do. I think there have just been some things that have unfortunately piled up injury wise that I don’t like to bring to anyone’s attention because I always feel like I can fight through it. That I can always get through those things and not have them be a factor. Well [Gruden] feels like there are some things that are factors that are taking away from what I bring to the table, so right now it is his decision.”


“The ankle, I’m going to go out and run around today,” said Garcia. “I feel like it is heeling up fast. It was one of those things where I just rolled my ankle unfortunately it was stiff on Monday. It got better as the week has progressed. It is at a point now where I feel like if I was the starter I would’ve been able to practice yesterday and today.

“I’ve played through a lot worse before and that is not anything new. Everybody in this locker room is going to play through some nicks, some pain, and some sort of injury. That is just the way that this game is and I don’t expect anything less. I feel like there are some things that I can definitely play through.”

“Our relationship is not fractured,” said Garcia about him and Gruden. “We’ve had some good talks and some good meetings, and as much as that is difficult to take as far as not being the starter this weekend, we are going to work through this together and I’m going to do whatever I have to do to better myself.”

And the saga continues...  Keep fighting for starting time Jeff, we need more piss poor efforts in the coming weeks!

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The NFC South comes thru Tampa.

SR's Pick-By-Pick Analysis
ROUND 6 - FLORIDA STATE LB GENO HAYES
"What a waste of a pick... Can you tell me how Geno Hayes is going to make this team.."

look, if he gets his head out of his arse and steps up his game then that's better for everyone.

That's a big if man... Clearly he's our best when he wants to be but please tell me anything you've seen since the end of last season indicating he's happy here, or wants to give it his all this season.

____________________________
The NFC South comes thru Tampa.

SR's Pick-By-Pick Analysis
ROUND 6 - FLORIDA STATE LB GENO HAYES
"What a waste of a pick... Can you tell me how Geno Hayes is going to make this team.."

Well things are strange, but obvious as well.

The "injury" to Jeff was obviously a fabrication in an effort to stymie media drama, locker-room drama.  But Garcia obviously has fell out of favor with Gruden.  Why else would he pursue Brett Favre when he has twelve thousand QBs in his stable?  He should have canned all the a subject for debate talk about ankle injury, it makes him look bad.  He should have had the cajones to just come out and say I am not happy with Jeff, and Griese is the man I want to oll with.  Who cares if Jeff's feelings get hurt?  This is a mans game, in the mans league...Gruden should not feel the need to gently coddle Garcia's busted ego.

This whole thing stinks.  

Tampa Bay Bucs...the STEPCHILD of the Glazers!

Maybe I'm blind, but I just don't see the "piss poor" aspect of his play.  He was rusty.  So was Peyton Manning last week.  I sincerly question this move by a coach that has a history of burning bridges with his starting QB's.  

___________________________________________________

Dear Glazers,

Please sell the team to Eddie DeBartolo.

Thank you,
--the fans

Not fractured as long as Garcia holds out hope for a contract extension.

Said Garcia, several weeks too late.

He missed throws all day long and blew the game for us.  Call it whatever you want.

____________________________
The NFC South comes thru Tampa.

SR's Pick-By-Pick Analysis
ROUND 6 - FLORIDA STATE LB GENO HAYES
"What a waste of a pick... Can you tell me how Geno Hayes is going to make this team.."

How many 39 year old QB's are able to play at a high level for a consecutive number of starts?

This could be a good thing for Garcia, because he doesn't have to get exposed to hits or critisism for his play, and his chances of getting a new contract from someone after this year are improved.

Let Garcia get the rust off in practice not on the playing field. The coaches need to go witht the best option to win now. The Bucs have 53 players on this team and it is the coaches responcability to each and every man on that team to put the players on the field who give them the best chance to win. Any player who asks his coach to allow him to play through the rust when another unrusty player gives the team a better option to win is asking the team to sacrifice to much

I don't see this as burning a bridge, fracturing a relationship or anything even remotely close to that. Garcia stunk it up late in the season last year and blew butt so far this year. He's 38, whining about a contract and not playing well. Not to mention his talks with the media that can be detrimental to the team. I think Gruden made the right decision and it will benefit us. I never believed the calk injury and I am not buying the ankle either. THis whole thing stinks. I was against him coming here in the first place and all this just proves my gut right.

I 'tried' to do my best to put all that behind me.

So much for Jeff being a professional who will put all this contract and Favre stuff behind him on game day.

I hope he turns it around fast.

If Griese falters or is injured, it won't be Luke going in. Maybe this week but not the rest of the year.

If Garcia wasn't pulling a work slow down and was just injured or rusty, then I'll take him back in a
second if he can get back to where he was last year when the season was going well. But at this
point, I don't know what to think about what has been happening.

I think Gruden's decision is a good one.

As far as Garcia falling out of favor with Gruden because the team went after Favre? I don't see
that at all. Favre is Favre. You go after him if you have a shot.

You're blind.

No, he's not blind. You just have a low football IQ

Garcia didn't even have a bad game. Im shocked at how peole are jumping on him for 1 game. He didn't even turn the ball over once!

So what, he took a couple sacks.....thats just because of the style of football he plays.

Agree with Joe 100%.  This IS another chapter in the Bucs drama called "As the QBs turn" but we haven't seen enough chapters yet.
At least I haven't.

Who woulda thunk this up preseason???

Come on. I am a fan of Jeff's but besides the last few drives, he was pretty bad.

Man... I saw the whole thing coming. He clearly hasn't put the contract issues behind him.

On the McCoy/Okung bandwagon!
Time for the scorched earth policy on the TBB roster

No, you just have a low IQ, period.

Jeff bit out there, to not see it requires someone to be literally blind, or to just be so infatuated with Jeff they won't see it.

Which are you?

For a guy who CLEARLY DID NOT EVEN SEE THE GAME, you really have a strong opinion..

LMAO

Actually, he turned the ball over once.  Had a few missed throws, but nothing unexpceted from a QB that didn't play in the Pre-Season.  This is a knee-jerk reaction is likely gonna blow up in Gruden's face.

___________________________________________________

Dear Glazers,

Please sell the team to Eddie DeBartolo.

Thank you,
--the fans

Knee-Jerk?

The guy hasn't been the same since last november.  Jon has some slow reflexes...

First, he threw a game-ending INT by trying to hit a double-covered WR on a crossing route when he had two other much more open options. So yeah, he had a turnover, and a critical one.

If you go back and watch the tape, you'll see that Jeff missed opportunities at least half a dozen times in that game or more, either due to poor throws (physical) or poor decisions (mental). For a QB that is touted as accurate and takes pride in that aspect of his game, the amount of poor throws he made was unacceptable.

With better QB play, this was a game the Bucs could have won.

Gruden can't win to spite himself. If he leaves him in, people cry that he plays favorites and won't adjust.
If he pulls him, he's making a knee jerk reaction.

You guys missed a decent Bucs game on Sunday.  In case you missed the final too, the Saints won.

IT WAS ONE OFF GAME!  You don't bench your starting QB after one bad game!!!  

___________________________________________________

Dear Glazers,

Please sell the team to Eddie DeBartolo.

Thank you,
--the fans

Garcia was horrible...read the Fab 5 for a great breakdown.  I think his statement was/is a little bit of spin control on his part...to be a sympathetic figure, perhaps even to play ball with the front office as they work the phones to make a trade (likey for a stuck of previously chewed bubble gum and Chris Simms).  Jeff has to "pretend" to be a supportive team player.  I've said it before, he was solid for most of the first half of last season...but coming off of Gradkowski, anyone would've seemed solid.  The guy has been crap since getting hurt in the Washington game.  He's old and bitter about never having been treated like an "elite" QB.  Yeah, this whole thing could very well blow-up.  Gruden has to realize that his job is very much riding on this and might get shown the door in spite of his contract extention (see, Billick, Brian).  I suppose one way or another this will work itself out.  But clearly the Garcia era is at an end!

I really hate to tell you this but he threw a pick late in the game!

Right. Then if Garcia has another poor game next week, it's Gruden's fault for letting him carry on.

This does raise a question?

Will Griese be benched if he has a bad game Sunday?

On the McCoy/Okung bandwagon!
Time for the scorched earth policy on the TBB roster

Why would you say that when Garcia addresses that fact directly. The Bucs just chose to make a decision earlier than Garcia would have liked.

You missed the playoff game too?  In case you missed the final of that game too, the Giants won.

Just go look at the stats from before Garcia hurt his back and all the games after he came back. He has played piss poor since he came back and Gruden doesn't want this to turn into '04 when he waited 4 games to bench Johnson.

This was a carry-over from the poor game against the Giants, and a poor game in the pre-season. Staff had concern after that game, and Jeff didn't do anything to help himself against the Saints. The move was an obvious one.

It's more than just the game performance, read the Fab 5

The last time Jeff Garcia looked "right" was in the Washington game last season. He looked injured when he came back from his injury last year, including the Giants game and he looked rusty Sunday. Throw on top of the fact that Gruden seemed annoyed at not only the physical mistakes....which the board is focused on....but some of the calls at the line as well.

Griese should have started the season since he got all the reps in the preseason. Garcia did not have a right to be on the field in week 1 because he did not have enough practice with his team.

Y-O-L-O