It's official: Garcia to sit

Coach Jon Gruden just made it official, saying without reservation after a just-completed practice that Brian Griese will start Sunday's game against the Falcons.

Gruden said the team hopes Garcia can use the week off to heal his sprained ankle and, perhaps, make a full recovery from the calf injury that limited him in the preseason that might not be completely healed.

"I believe the best thing to do is go with Griese and that's what we'll do," Gruden said.

"I just want him to get healthy physically and emotionally and hopefully he can come back and get started and be the kind of quarterback I know he is."

Not sure what Gruden means when he refers to Garcia's emotional state, but this might not be strictly a matter of health. Also, indications we got from a subsequent conversation with Gruden point to Garcia being very unhappy with the decision, a sign he feels he is able to play this week.

As far as Griese is concerned, starting this weekend gives him a chance to potentially finish what he started in Tampa in 2005, when he suffered a season-ending knee injury.

"When I left here in 2005, I had unfinished business," he said.  "I knew we had a good team and that stung. Ever since that point, I wanted the opportunity to come back and finish that business and that's how I'm going to approach this, as a continuation of what I started."

Also, updating an earlier post, Warrick Dunn's absence in today's practice was scheduled. The team is trying to keep him fresh considering he is 33-years old.

STEPHEN F. HOLDER

Comments

[Tom]

Gruden did very little to help out his QB last week. Like throwing fade stop routes when your QB is struggling. Not sticking to the running game. Like not neutralizing the pass rush with screens and draws or using max protect.

Let's hope Griese can put the ball in the hands of our playmakers and eliminate the one or two bonehead plays that kills us.

[Arun]

Well it took one week to see why they chased Favre and didn't give Garcia a new contract. I would rather have Griese as our starter anyway. Garcia is over rated and before anyone says he was last seasons' savior, that title belongs to E.G..

[bobbyd]

Spot on, Tom with Gruden's playcalling.

I just posted elsewhere that I imagine if Griese does well this week, Jeff's ankle / pinky / calf will take much longer to heal.

[Ben]

Garica last start as a Buc.......

[jeff chick]

lets play ball

[Fred]

If the Bucs want inspiration they should all watch a tape of last nights Rays game. Guys replacing injured players need to step up for the Bucs the same as guys have stepped up for the Rays. Sunday Rays at 1:00 Bucs at 4:00. Life is good.

[jeff]

finally!griese looked good in preseason.garcia looked like sims.he just isnt making plays.see giants game

[Oliver]

Good decision by Gruden. Having said that, had he given Garcia a chance with a more predominant run game on Sunday...

Griese gives us a better chance to win right now. Garcia isn't fully fit. When he's healthy, he'll be back to his best.

For now, Griese is the guy.

[bobbyd]

jeff, "finally"? It's only been one game. It's not like we're halfway through the season.

[Tom]

It's amazing what short term memory Bucs fans have. Garcia had one of the best performance by any QB in Bucs history, period. And now Bucs "fans" liken him to the plague.

Arun, you will be surprise to know that statistically, Garcia is one of the best QBs of all time. I guess that's overrated. Apparently, you didn't watch many games last year.

[jose]

hilarious....gruden has already panicked after game 1. Would bet his contract extension has some loopholes, he is acting like a man that does not have a long term contract. what a fool. both the QBs are average, but let Garcia try again before you implode the team.

[Adam]

I am making a prediction: Griese never gives back the starting job.

[reid]

is garcia still listed at number 2. i have confidence in griese, but hate that gruden is creating a QB controversy. garcia held things together last year. either way, we should run the ball until an opponent shows us they can stop the run.

[Larry]

Saw this one coming with the Monday 'questionable' pronouncement on Garcia. Gruden chased Farve, Garcia challenged Gruden as to why and Gruden took the questioning personally - now we see both the result and the reason why Farve didn't come to Tampa. Brett's been around too long and been too successful to put up with this petty tyrant crap.

This isn't a knock on Griese; he played well in the pre-season. That being said the O-line had better play LOTS better than they showed last week or he'll be back on the bench before the end of the Bears game with ice on some joint and an MRI scheduled for Monday.

Unless the defense returns to 'top 5' form for the remaining 15 games I'd say it's 50/50 that Josh Johnson starts a game in December. Seems to me like Gruden lost his 'easy' button and replaced with with a 'panic' button.

[Oliver]

It's pretty disgusting the way some fans are happy to see Garcia on the sidelines.

He's an awesome quarterback, but he's not completely healthy. When he's up to full speed he'll be back on the field.

Hopefully at Soldier Field on the 21st.

[Oliver]

Larry: Favre wasn't allowed to stay in the same division as the Packers, ruling out Minnesota and Tampa Bay as destinations.

Thus, he's in the AFC.

Gruden's only fault on Sunday was not running the ball often enough. If Galloway and Garcia aren't at their best, that's hardly his fault. If both of those guys had been inactive, he would have been lambasted for it.

Less penalties and the fumble-that-wasn't would have tipped the game in our favour, and that was with poor offense and major defensive lapses. If the Bucs iron those out, they'll be fine.

[Jason]

I think it's a hoot that there are so many "fans" that are privy to inside info, like "Larry"- glad to see YOU know why BF didn 't come to TB!... and "Jose" and "Arun". You guys are hilarious! How about, Garcia is not at 100%, he's rusty, and Griese is the b/u QB. Simple as that.

Garcea can't read coverages very well;put a quaterback in their who can.Great call Jon;now let's get better play calling. GO BUCS

Garcea can't read coverages very well;put a quaterback in their who can.Great call Jon;now let's get better play calling. GO BUCS

[Larry]

Sorry Oliver, don't agree. That type of intervention by either the Packers or the Commissioner is tampering and would cost the NFL their current exemptions from US labor laws.

Garcia didn't play well, no doubt. Some was rust, some was the poor play of the O-line, some was less than marvelous play calling. But neither his ankle nor his play is the reason he's sitting.

Gruden changes QBs more than some of us change underwear. He's fickle and blames everyone but himself when things go wrong. Remember the 1st quarter of the Giants playoff game? Lots of running and some play action passing had the Giants off balance. Then Gruden insisted on trying to implement his grand scheme of throwing to Galloway. Might have worked except that 1) Galloway was hurt and 2) the Giants had game planned to take Galloway away and force the Bucs to go elsewhere for offense.

Good game planning by the coaches can overcome physical limitations of the players on the field. Bad game planning can turn advantages into stalemates or worse. How many times has a Gruden-led offense truly taken advantage of what they had? The Bucs, unlike the Chiefs and the Raiders, have a pretty talented offensive team. It's a shame we don't get to see it used well.

[buxfan]

could it be that Garcia is still upset about his contract and seems to be unable to practice or stay healthy because of it?

[CVal]

...And the meltdown begins. (AFTER JUST THE FIRST LOSS)

[Turk]

Well the Fox interview with Gruden made it pretty darn clear that the main reason for Garcia's benching is his emotional health and not physical. Straight from Gruden's mouth.

Benching Garcia is going to affect his bonus again this year, especially if it goes over one game. I'm guessing that that will drive a much deeper stake into Garcia's heart and cause more animosity between him and Gruden.

If Griese plays well against Atl. I figure he'll get the nod against Chi.
if for no other reason than he knows their defense or should.

All that being said we may very well have seen the last of Garcia on the field for the Bucs. I do have a feeling he will be speaking up if he sits for more than one game.

Can you imagine how he is going to feel knowing that it has gone public that he isn't playing due to what is in his head. Ouch! I feel for the guy but I am also glad to see Griese get the nod.

[jobucs]

Adam is right on. Garcia doesn't see another starting snap with the Bucs.

[sauce]

Way to go Gruden, It,s no wonder your players don,t like playing for you,And you can,t sign caliber players, NOBODY WANTS TO PLAY FOR YOU, Go back to Oakland and screw up their team.

[dave]

Has the game sold out yet?

[Gene]

Let's not forget what happened in 1967 or 1968 when Bob Griese was a 3rd string Q who was given a chance because the other two being injured. This could be Griese's similar break!

[DV]

It's amazing what short term memory Bucs fans have. Garcia had one of the best performance by any QB in Bucs history, period. And now Bucs "fans" liken him to the plague.

Arun, you will be surprise to know that statistically, Garcia is one of the best QBs of all time. I guess that's overrated. Apparently, you didn't watch many games last year.

Posted by: Tom | September 10, 2008 at 04:52 PM

I watched every game for the past 4 years and almost every game since 1995 when I moved to Tampa. Stats can be made to say anything. I can tell you that Garcia statistically sucks in the playoffs, and has done so for 3 teams. The only numbers that really matter are W's and L's. If you want to say he has a high QB rating and completion %, I will say it's because a high # of his passes are low risk and short yardage. What you got now? He isn't an great QB, just average, and worse, he is a bad team mate, selfish, and the fact that he bad mouthed Gruden's playbook publicly just screams that he doesn't want to be here any more. That playbook worked fine for Brad Johnson, Rich Gannon, even Brian Griese before his injury forced #2 to attempt to be a QB. Garcia didn't get us to the playoffs last year. Graham did.

[DV]

Way to go Gruden, It,s no wonder your players don,t like playing for you,And you can,t sign caliber players, NOBODY WANTS TO PLAY FOR YOU, Go back to Oakland and screw up their team.

Posted by: sauce

Yeah that #1 offense in Oakland was a nightmare to watch. You are a tool. Lots of players have said they like playing for Gruden. Stop hating.

[Willhandicap]

Jon Gruden benched a quarterback? Wow, I never saw this one coming.
Building an offense requires BUILDING, not STRIPPING!

[Valrico Rick]

There are more than 1,500 words between Holder's initial blog report and the Post a comment box, and I'm not convinced that the truth is even there. It's not panic, or backstabbing, or any kind of subterfuge. Garcia was pressing, that's why the interception killed the last chance drive at NOLA. I think Gruden is simply going with the quarterback that gives the team the best chance to win. Garcia needs to get a grip and realize that he has survived in the NFL long enough to be accused of being too old, and that doesn't happen to many quarterbacks. Somebody is still giving him a paycheck to do it, and as it has been spoken he needs to man up, he can't win a power struggle with Gruden, no player ever has, nor will. If Garcia starts acting more the malcontent it's over, but if he wants to settle down and be a quarterback chances are he still has a job.

[JS]

Larry-

Why do you persist? You don't work for the league, so how do you know about trades and tampering? I think it is conceivable and even likely that the Packers cut the Jets a break as they are an AFC team. That is completely within their rights as they own the rights to the player they are trading. There is no tampering, there is no chicanery. You need to get your facts straight and quit trying to be a clairvoyant or league insider.

[kurt]

i think gruden did the honorable thing by allowing garcia's play be the deciding factor. garcia laid an egg and now the obvious starter can take his rightful place in the lineup. this has been coming for awhile now. anybody with any insight saw this coming like a mack truch. garcia has been outplayed by griese since he arrived for ota's. let me pose one simple question: why has our offense looked sharp, productive and error free every time griese has been under center this preseason, whether it be 1st, 2nd or 3rd stingers; yet they look like a bunch of clowns when garcia is in the game? and i agree that the 1000 yds rushing in 10 starts is what got us to the playoffs; not those putredly low 13 td passes! furthermore, gannon became a pro-bowler under gruden's system and i full-heartedly believe that griese can too. go bucs!!!

[Vince]

Tom:

The fade-stop routes are Garcia's call, not Gruden's and you cannot "stick with the running game" when you are way behind in down and distance. The Bucs went 3 and out, had several drives with penalties that put them at 1st and 20, ran two 2 minute offenses, and were behind most of the game. Did you watch the game?

The stupidest comments you hear on these boards are comments like "if the Bucs run 25 times they win." It is exactly the reverse: if the Bucs win, they run 25 times because they are in the lead.

Enough with the Gruden isn't committed to the run talk. The Raiders were a prolific three running back, running team. The Bucs are a running team, just not when the circumstances don't allow it.

[tradewinds loser boy moser]

bruce allen the genius gm coulda had favre but noooooooooooooo. forget about the playoffs bucs.

[Stephen_Holder]

Maybe none of us REALLY know what's going on here, myself included, but I can tell you that from what I understand, Garcia did not take this news lying down. He was very irritated by the decision likely because he thinks he can play this week. Not saying he's right, but the fact that he'll see this as a benching (regardless of what it really is or isn't) means this relationship between him and Gruden could grow worse still. I didn't even think that was possible based on what I hear about Jeff's feelings for Jon and Bruce, but maybe I was wrong. We haven't heard the last of this story. If and when Garcia has anything to say this week, it could be very telling.

[go bucs!]

Garcia was rusty last week but so was Peyton Manning. Alright, let's not compare these two guys as that's apples and oranges. However, starting qb's don't typically get pulled with injuries unless they are truely sidelining injuries. And to top it off your coach is telling everyone that you're having emotional issues???!! Yes, those who are clicking their heels over this change really do have a short term memory. Garcia saved Gruden's job and now is getting dumped like a bad habit. Is this a surprise though?..not at all given Gruden's track record. Don't get me wrong, I think Griese is a good qb for this system but Garcia is better. Let him work the rust off as our starter if he truly is our starter. I agree, unless a major blow up by Griese, Garcia is no longer #1. Hopefully, as a Bucs fan, this works out but I think Garcia still gives us a better opportunity to win. Gruden, you've done it again!!!

[Tom]

"if you want to say he has a high QB rating and completion %, I will say it's because a high # of his passes are low risk and short yardage. What you got now?"

DV, let me give you some facts since you forgot how good Garcia was in SF.

2000 4278 yards 31 TDS 10 INTS
2001 3538 yards 32 TDS 12 INTS
2002 3344 yards 21 TDS 10 INTS

I guess these are average numbers for a QB. You don't throw over 4000 yards with dinks and dunks. What YOU got now? Think before you type bozo!

[Big Buc Fan]

Everybody just get a grip. Its just one game and the bucs had a chance to end it on a game winning drive. Bucs 34 falcons 17. Go Bucs!!!

[Drew]

Garcia is allowing the Favre situation and last seasons bonus affect his play on the field. Instead of letting it go and playing the way he's capable of playing he's dwelling on it way to much.

The majority of us work for a living and if we allowed events like these to affect our day to day performance at work. Let there be no doubt we'd be fired.

Things happen in life that we don't agree with, but we suck it up, get over it, and move on in our best interest.

If these are the issues with Garcia and he's allowing it to affect his performance on the field, then good riddance.

Kudo's to Jon for recognizing it and not being afraid to act on it. The fans deserve better and he's trying to deliver.

[Drew]

Garcia is allowing the Favre situation and last seasons bonus affect his play on the field. Instead of letting it go and playing the way he's capable of playing he's dwelling on it way to much.

The majority of us work for a living and if we allowed events like these to affect our day to day performance at work. Let there be no doubt we'd be fired.

Things happen in life that we don't agree with, but we suck it up, get over it, and move on in our best interest.

If these are the issues with Garcia and he's allowing it to affect his performance on the field, then good riddance.

Kudo's to Jon for recognizing it and not being afraid to act on it. The fans deserve better and he's trying to deliver.

[Vince]

Stephen, Garcia seems like the ultimate team guy and a self-motivated competitor, but I have heard that he is actually all about the money. Can you comment on that? If that is true, he must be angry because not only did the Bucs not renegotiate but he got shortchanged last year.

[Jesse]

I don't know what's going on with Garcia. Based on certain throws, my 1st reaction was, "Garcia, get your head in the game!" He wasn't consistent; it was obvious that something wasn't quite right. At the PC after the game, Garcia spoke humbly about his performance, mostly; then, he's suddenly got an ankle injury, leading to Griese starting, a move that does not surprise me. Simply put, Jeff needs to figure it out in a hurry, or he may not play for the Bucs again. There were other factors to the loss, definitely, but I credit Garcia for most of the blame, not Gruden, unlike Tom. I've always liked Griese, but like Tom, with the exception of some bonehead plays in some games; I'm sure Brian (& Tom) would remember the ones I do. Although, he seems more focused now, unlike Garcia. The Bucs will be ready for the Falcons, especially the D.

[Drew]

It's possible some of the players requested the QB change.

[Vince]

GO GET ANQUAN BOLDIN! AND STOP BEING SO **#$@!!! PREDICTABLE ON YOUR PLAY CALLING!!!!! P.S GO TAMPA, RULE JOHN GRUDEN!

[bobbyd]

Wow. The more I read about this the more this smells like a benching. I certainly didn't see that coming. It's a little hard to comprehend. They had him on an awfully short leash given the success he had last season.

My bet would be you won't see Garcia take another snap as a Buc.

[Braheem Ackmadia]

Gruden should have made this decision last week! No continue this train of thought and bench Galloway likewise! Diminutive 2nd round Rookie WRs made a tremendous impact in week #1. DeSean Jackson (Eagles) & Eddie Royal (Broncos). Toss Dexter Jackson out there in Galloway's slot. Let him stretch the field and oh yeah....Toss it Deep, he is a 2nd rnd pick for crying out LOUD! Get him out there, put some explosion on the field! Who uses a 2nd rnd pick for a punt returner????

do some of you guys even understand football? is it gruden fault trueblood got penalty after a spectacular play that was called by gruden. you come up with a play for 1st and 25. if the the players dont execute the play dont work period.the bucs will be fine i think griese keeps the starting job after this week

[Steve L]

Good point made above. I feared that Desean Jackson would look good in some other uniform and although it’s early, he’s certainly looked good so far. It wouldn’t hurt to try some 3 wide sets with Galloway and D. Jackson to stretch the field with Bryant in the slot and the TE running a route. Someone will be open.

[Tom]

Braheem, get rid of Garcia and Galloway in favor of Griese and Dexter Jackson? Good Lord. Thank goodness you're an armchair QB instead of a real coach. Ridiculous!