Jeff Garcia is, IMHO, one of the most underrated players of the past fifteen years. Virtually every place he's been, his team has had success, yet they can't seem to get rid of him fast enough. My hypothesis is that this IS due to the perception that he's, well... you know
, and that's complete and utter bull
Edited. Profanity and masked profanity are against forum rules and may result in discipline.. His numbers last year were quite comparable to those of the J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS' new QB.
Now, what I've also heard but don't have the data to back up is that he hasn't performed very well when asked to operate outside of a west coast offense. But, he's always seemed like a smart guy, you love that he can move around the pocket a bit, and he's definately a wily veteran. I'm definately a Garcia fan.
BUT, if they were going to make a move, it would have been early this week, to give him 10-12 days to cram an abbreviated version of the playbook. Face it, if Cassell bombs out, it'll be time to dust of Vinnie again, since he could step in and play basically on day one. I think he's basically the third QB right now, just not officially signed; if Cassell gets hurt, you know they'll be on the phone.
The bigger worry I have, though... and I hesitate to even say this... but has Belichick's ego just gotten the better of him? Does he really believe that the team wouldn't have been better-off with someone like Chris Simms or even Tim Rattay as the backup? Let O'Connell learn as the third QB for the season - at least someone like Simms or Rattay or Testeverde or Garcia would be a viable guy to put into the game should Cassell get hurt. Is this Belichick's big "SCREW YOU!" to the football universe, trying to prove that he can coach a team to the title regardless of the players?
Really, how would have signing someone like Simms possibly have been a bad thing? They brought him to town, but didn't work him out. Why not? How can having a guy who's actually taken a few snaps in the NFL really be a bad thing? If Cassel can't take the pressure, well... he's not likely to be a successful NFL QB, is he? He'll be pulling a Vince Young on us before week 12...