There are two places in the NFL players rarely want to go to
these days, and one of them just signed Gilroy native Jeff
Garcia
There are two places in the NFL players rarely want to go to these days, and one of them just signed Gilroy native Jeff Garcia.
The other just had a less successful season than the auto industry down the street from its stadium, known as Ford Field.
But while we could come up with a long list of reasons why Jeff Garcia won’t be able to help a franchise that is a combined 24-72 since appearing in Super Bowl XXXVII in early 2003, let’s focus on the positive pieces in play. When you look at the situation in total, there seems to be more than meets the eye.
The most obvious reason Garcia is coming back to the Bay Area is because of family. His best friend is his father, Bobby, and he clearly wants to be close to his mother and sisters as well while his own immediate family continues to grow. (Garcia and his wife are expecting their second child in less than a year and a half.)
You can say what you want about the talented San Francisco 49ers teams he came into the league with, but the best football of Garcia’s career was always played a short drive up 101 to Candlestick. Being close to home could put him at ease after the headaches he had to deal with last year in Tampa Bay (see Brett Favre fiasco and the fallout with coach Jon Gruden).
There’s also the idea that Garcia can contribute something to a team that won its last two games of the season in 2008 but still needs to see more from its young quarterback prospect. JaMarcus Russell has all the tools to be The Guy, but he hasn’t found his groove yet. Some say it goes to work ethic. Well, if Russell gives close to the kind of effort Garcia has put into the game in his 10-year NFL career, the production of the third-year pro should skyrocket.
If he doesn’t follow suit, Russell could find himself in a situation similar to that of Vince Young with the Tennessee Titans. Kerry Collins, the crafty veteran who knows how to manage a game more than anything, shows that there’s a need to have someone you can trust calling the shots.
“I feel I bring strength to the position – a certain sense of maturity and experience and leadership to the position and the team – and hopefully those can all lead to positive things,” Garcia said.
He can also bring a knowledge of the playbook that is above and beyond any of the other shot-callers on the roster. With quarterbacks coach Paul Hackett and passing coordinator Ted Tollner on the Raiders’ staff, there is a familiarity of the West Coast Offense and one another that is rare. It requires a player to stick around in the league for some time.
Hackett coached Garcia in his first year at Tampa, when Garcia earned his fourth Pro Bowl nod. Tollner was a QB coach in San Francisco and offensive coordinator while Garcia was in Detroit.
“Those two guys have been great influences on my life from a football standpoint,” Garcia said.
“I think if those two coaches aren’t there (in Oakland), I think it may be a completely different story.”
And then there’s the recent examples of quick turnaround across the NFL. Garcia sees a strong backfield in Justin Fargas, Darren McFadden and Michael Bush, as well as a line that is getting solidified.
“I think it’s definitely a possibility (to win now),” Garcia said. “You look at how things happen around the league, and how things went down in Atlanta last year, and Miami winning just one game the previous year. There’s no reason a team can’t turn around their misfortune or bad fortune and make it a positive thing. And I don’t see why Oakland can’t do that this year.”
You can scoff at his optimism, but it won’t change a thing. Garcia has been hearing the doubters all his life.
