dave mcbride Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 i'm not reading too much into this, but given what lenny p says below and the fact that he's in close contact with the bills, well, you never know. the bills do need a backup qb: "That Feb. 22 date means that another veteran quarterback whose current team will move in a different direction, Jeff Garcia of the Cleveland Browns, has less than two weeks until he is handed a pink-slip by the team that last spring signed him to a four-year, $25 million contract. Truth be told, given the rebuilding job that will be promulgated by new Browns general manager Phil Savage and coach Romeo Crennel, being released probably will be a good thing for Garcia, who will find a market for his services. Things never did work out for Garcia during his one-year tenure in Cleveland. The Browns never installed the offense they had promised him. ESPN.com has confirmed that Browns officials had promised Garcia they would bring in Bill Walsh as a consultant to help with the transition to a West Coast-style design, and that never happened. The offensive line disintegrated because of injuries and the running game was sporadic. Garcia didn't help himself, of course, by going public with his criticisms of the offense. And there were a number of off-field issues that made him a convenient target as well. But teams would be wise to go back and take a look at Garcia's performance in an Oct. 24 home loss to Philadelphia. Hard to believe, given the way in which the Browns season ended, but Cleveland was 3-3 going into that game. Garcia played exceptionally, completing 21 of 32 attempts for 236 yards against a Super Bowl-caliber defense, in a 34-31 defeat. For his career, Garcia has an 87.2 quarterback rating, has completed 61.0 percent of his passes and has 123 touchdown passes versus only 65 interceptions. Sure, Garcia will be 35 later this month. Yep, he's probably got to be in a system conducive to his talents. But the guy may not be quite as far over the hill as some Cleveland critics would contend. The bet here (with a little inside knowledge) is that Garcia will be of interest to a couple teams once he is officially released." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Again though, why would Garcia want to come to Buffalo, if the Bills are already saying that Losman is the starter? Garcia proved this year in Clevland, that he will not tolerate being a #2 without complaining. He views himself as a #1 guy, and I think a few other teams will too! Detroit comes to mind! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillnutinHouston Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Again though, why would Garcia want to come to Buffalo, if the Bills are already saying that Losman is the starter? 236195[/snapback] Show me a link where they said that. Please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fake-Fat Sunny Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Again though, why would Garcia want to come to Buffalo, if the Bills are already saying that Losman is the starter? Garcia proved this year in Clevland, that he will not tolerate being a #2 without complaining. He views himself as a #1 guy, and I think a few other teams will too! Detroit comes to mind! 236195[/snapback] Like ,pst 1st round draft choices, even though us Bills partisans have great hopes and some faith in JP, once Bledsoe goes, Buffalo is an excellent opportunity for a vet QB to have a shot at a starting job with a team that came within an eyelash of making the playoffs last year, It will not be a cadillac gig in that Losman will be given lots of chances to screw up and still be the starter. However, if Garica believes in himself he will get ample opportunities in pre-season to show what he can do and Bills fans have demonstrated with Bledsoe that what you did for another team or yesterday for the Bills when he was welcomed to town and made the Pro Bowl means little to Bills fans when you lose. If Garcia does well and Losman has missteps like most first year starters do then the drumbeat will start for Garcia to start. If Losman turns out to be a far better collegian than a pro or gets hurt (which he showed he can do last year though I think the injury prone label is premature) then he is the starter on a team with lots of talent on the D, on the ST and on the O with WM, Moulds and Reed. I think the stopper here is that Bledsoe being cut/traded actually places a large enough cap constraint on us that we may not be able to match other offers from less talented teams Garcua will get. From a Bills perspective the most accurate way to view Bledsoe;s accelerated cap his is as an additional cost for our back-up QB, Even though in theory we can find the cap room to pay Garcia at the rate he signed last year ($6+ million a year) even if we paid him half that amount how will we feel about a $7+ million outlay for a back-up QB. I think Garcia might want to come here, but I doubt we pull the trigger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jester43 Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 i don't know why we would want to pick up someone else's garbage, when it's no better than what we have now. if losman is not ready to start next year, i'd rather start a sucky qb that knows what is going on (bledsoe)than one who doesn't(every other name i have read). although i will say that garcia is the least revolting of the options i have read here today. charlie batch?! sheeee-it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Darin Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 i don't know why we would want to pick up someone else's garbage, when it's no better than what we have now. if losman is not ready to start next year, i'd rather start a sucky qb that knows what is going on (bledsoe)than one who doesn't(every other name i have read). although i will say that garcia is the least revolting of the options i have read here today. charlie batch?! sheeee-it. 236334[/snapback] Garcia can still play. NO current NFL QB would have succeeded in the abortion that Butch Davis/Terry Robiskie were trying to pass off as a football team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadBuffaloDisease Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Garcia can still play. NO current NFL QB would have succeeded in the abortion that Butch Davis/Terry Robiskie were trying to pass off as a football team. IOW, it's NEVER Garcia's fault! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VABills Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Garcia can still play. NO current NFL QB would have succeeded in the abortion that Butch Davis/Terry Robiskie were trying to pass off as a football team. 236356[/snapback] I agree Garcia can play. He doesn't have a big arm, but he seems to have a brain and can move in the pocket a little. Even though San Fran didn't do much with him, he sure made Owens and the rest look real good out there. Now Owens is good, but the rest were not very good receivers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Show me a link where they said that. Please. 236265[/snapback] Uh, if you want to read the article yourself, it is the one posted on Two Bills Drive, written by Len Pasquerelli, the same article that inspired this thread. Here is the quote that I am referring to: " After a couple of weeks at home in California, quarterback J.P. Losman arrived back at the Buffalo Bills complex this week to begin offseason workouts, and there is a pretty good reason why the 2004 first-round pick is suddenly the team's early bird in the weight room. The decision has essentially already been made by Bills officials, several sources told ESPN.com, that Losman, who missed much of his rookie season recovering from a broken leg suffered in training camp, will be the starter in 2005. In fact, it is believed that Buffalo officials have apprised Drew Bledsoe of the plan to elevate the former Tulane star to the top of the depth chart and are giving the 12-year veteran some time to consider the ramifications of the move, and to determine if he wants to return to the Bills as the backup. " Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buftex Posted February 11, 2005 Share Posted February 11, 2005 Like ,pst 1st round draft choices, even though us Bills partisans have great hopes and some faith in JP, once Bledsoe goes, Buffalo is an excellent opportunity for a vet QB to have a shot at a starting job with a team that came within an eyelash of making the playoffs last year, It will not be a cadillac gig in that Losman will be given lots of chances to screw up and still be the starter. However, if Garica believes in himself he will get ample opportunities in pre-season to show what he can do and Bills fans have demonstrated with Bledsoe that what you did for another team or yesterday for the Bills when he was welcomed to town and made the Pro Bowl means little to Bills fans when you lose. If Garcia does well and Losman has missteps like most first year starters do then the drumbeat will start for Garcia to start. If Losman turns out to be a far better collegian than a pro or gets hurt (which he showed he can do last year though I think the injury prone label is premature) then he is the starter on a team with lots of talent on the D, on the ST and on the O with WM, Moulds and Reed. I think the stopper here is that Bledsoe being cut/traded actually places a large enough cap constraint on us that we may not be able to match other offers from less talented teams Garcua will get. From a Bills perspective the most accurate way to view Bledsoe;s accelerated cap his is as an additional cost for our back-up QB, Even though in theory we can find the cap room to pay Garcia at the rate he signed last year ($6+ million a year) even if we paid him half that amount how will we feel about a $7+ million outlay for a back-up QB. I think Garcia might want to come here, but I doubt we pull the trigger. 236298[/snapback] Well, the gist of the article is that Losman is already the starter in 2005, anyone else, be it Garcia or Bledsoe would be a back-up. I agree with you 100%, cutting Bledsoe, and then signing someone like Garcia, would not make much business sense. Now, the Bills might have been on to something last season, when they were pursuing Billy Volek. How many guys are there in the leauge like that? Kelly Holcomb? I am taking Alaska Darin's word that he is decent, though I can't claim to have seen it for myself. I just don't see us getting any sort of name QB, like Garcia or Warner (god I hope not!), etc etc to replace Bledsoe. Garcia did not really handle the back-up role all that well in 2004. I know the Browns were a mess, their Offense was terrible, and Butch Davis was kind of a headcase, but Garcia did a little more chirping than I would like to see in a QB, back-up or starter. It will likely be a journeymen type (Jeff Blake, Charlie Batch) who will command little salary, and is accustomed to playing the back up role. IMO, Bledsoe, for all of his faults (and yes I know he has many) is as good, if not a better option than most of these. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
njsue Posted February 12, 2005 Share Posted February 12, 2005 Jeff Garcia Oh Puke! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
obie_wan Posted February 12, 2005 Share Posted February 12, 2005 Like ,pst 1st round draft choices, even though us Bills partisans have great hopes and some faith in JP, once Bledsoe goes, Buffalo is an excellent opportunity for a vet QB to have a shot at a starting job with a team that came within an eyelash of making the playoffs last year, It will not be a cadillac gig in that Losman will be given lots of chances to screw up and still be the starter. However, if Garica believes in himself he will get ample opportunities in pre-season to show what he can do and Bills fans have demonstrated with Bledsoe that what you did for another team or yesterday for the Bills when he was welcomed to town and made the Pro Bowl means little to Bills fans when you lose. If Garcia does well and Losman has missteps like most first year starters do then the drumbeat will start for Garcia to start. If Losman turns out to be a far better collegian than a pro or gets hurt (which he showed he can do last year though I think the injury prone label is premature) then he is the starter on a team with lots of talent on the D, on the ST and on the O with WM, Moulds and Reed. I think the stopper here is that Bledsoe being cut/traded actually places a large enough cap constraint on us that we may not be able to match other offers from less talented teams Garcua will get. From a Bills perspective the most accurate way to view Bledsoe;s accelerated cap his is as an additional cost for our back-up QB, Even though in theory we can find the cap room to pay Garcia at the rate he signed last year ($6+ million a year) even if we paid him half that amount how will we feel about a $7+ million outlay for a back-up QB. I think Garcia might want to come here, but I doubt we pull the trigger. 236298[/snapback] garcia blows- why bring in a prima donna who is not that good anymore to screw with the team's chemistry look for Batch or Maddox or even Jay Fiedler not some over the hill prima donna who is delusional about his current ability to start in the NFL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike in Syracuse Posted February 12, 2005 Share Posted February 12, 2005 Jeff Garcia Oh Puke! 236452[/snapback] Sorry to bust your fantasy but Jeff Garcia and your beloved Bledsoe finished with an identical rating for the 2004 season. Jeff Garcia CLE 11 252 22.9 144 57.1 1731 157.4 99 10 9 24 99 76.7 Drew Bledsoe BUF 16 450 28.1 256 56.9 2932 183.2 69 20 16 37 215 76.6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Posted February 12, 2005 Share Posted February 12, 2005 Garcia will be the best back-up out there. If JP struggles, and struggles a lot this season could be over in early October. I would feel much better having a proven vet backing him up. The problem is finding a veteran to come in to play back-up. Garcia still views himself as a number one QB. Regardless, he will be the best available QB out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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