The magic ride for Jeff Garcia and the Eagles came to an end
Saturday as the Saints went marching to the NFC finals.
The magic ride for Jeff Garcia and the Eagles came to an end Saturday as the Saints went marching to the NFC finals.
Nevertheless, Garcia was so effective at running the West Coast offense that one of two things is likely to occur – Philadelphia will bring back the Gilroy native next year at a higher pay rate or Garcia at age 37 will land a multiyear deal with another team.
Yes, Garcia was that good. His numbers weren’t great against New Orleans but Garcia did an excellent job running the offense in a difficult place to play. And, he should have been given the chance at fourth-and-15 with 1:56 remaining to make something happen rather than the Eagles’ punting the ball away.
Andy Reid has done wonderful things in Philadelphia but that decision to punt certainly wasn’t one of them. One play earlier, Garcia scrambled away from pressure to connect with Hank Basket for a big gain. But a holding call brought the play back. Reid seemed to forget all about the Freddie Mitchell 4th-and-26 reception against Green Bay that is as much a part of Eagles’ lore as any single play in their history.
With Philadelphia’s defense unable to stop the run in the second half, there was no way the Eagles, with only two timeouts remaining, should have given the ball back to the Saints.
Back to Garcia. This may sound like heresy to the Eagles’ faithful but Garcia runs the West Coast offense better than Donovan McNabb. Garcia and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg were as good a tandem this year as they were in San Francisco during Garcia’s Pro Bowl years.
And there is the chance that they will be together next year again. Garcia told a reporter after the game that it would take a “pretty special” opportunity elsewhere for him to leave Philadelphia. That “special opportunity” could present itself with the way Garcia played during his eight-game stint with the Eagles.
Still, his father Bob Garcia will steer Jeff away from “opportunities” like the one in Houston that presented itself before he signed with the Eagles. After all, if you don’t have a good offensive line it doesn’t matter how much magic you have.
And Garcia, who turns 37 next month, appears to have plenty of magic remaining. What a difference a year made for the Eagles, who fell apart last year not only because of the divisiveness of Terrell Owens but because Mike McMahon couldn’t handle the West Coast offense when McNabb’s season ended prematurely because of a sports hernia.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Garcia said during a conversation several weeks ago. “I was not really thinking this could happen to me.”
It happened to him and the Eagles were three points away from their fifth NFC championship game in six years. What a ride it was for an ageless quarterback with plenty of life left in his right arm and legs.
Contact Marc David at (408) 842-1694 or at [email protected].
