Tuesday, Oct. 07, 2008

Bucs unsettled at quarterback again

Brian Griese's troublesome elbow and shoulder need to be further evaluated.

Jeff Garcia ran the offense well in his first taste of action in nearly a month.

But Tampa Bay Buccaneer coach Jon Gruden stood at the podium Monday morning at One Buc Place on and made no promises.

"We're going to address the quarterback situation once we get all the facts," Gruden said.

You didn't expect Tampa's quarterback situation to resolve this quickly, did you?

These are the Bucs, whose latest adventures involving the men under center would make a soap opera writer jealous. And the tale grew even more interesting during Sunday's 16-13 loss at Denver, when Griese left the game after sustaining a third-quarter hit by Champ Bailey, and Garcia, who has gone from Pro Bowler to benchwarmer in less than a year, got the call.

It was Garcia's first appearance since Tampa Bay's Week 1 loss at New Orleans, and he managed to drive the Bucs 90 yards for their only touchdown late in the fourth quarter.

But Garcia has his issues, too, both physical and mental, that dropped him to third on the depth chart behind Luke McCown. Consequently, Gruden isn't ready to decide who will start Sunday's home game against NFC South foe Carolina.

"Health is going to be an issue," Gruden said. "I thought Jeff did do some good things (Sunday). His health has been an issue, and his return to health is also something that we're excited about. We'll evaluate it . . . and let you know on Wednesday."

Garcia has been on the mend with calf, pinky and ankle issues and never warmed to losing his starting job a year after leading the Buccaneers to a division title. After struggling mightily against the Saints, Garcia completed13 of 17 passes for 93 yards Sunday and hit Ike Hilliard with a 7-yard strike with just more than two minutes left in the game.

"He's gotten better. It's been difficult," Gruden said. "He missed the entire training camp - not some of it, all of it, really. Our observation of him, on the practice field, we've seen more and more with Jeff Garcia lately. And I thought he went in there late in the game (Sunday) and moved around, made some creative plays that we're accustomed to seeing.

"I think he does feel better, I think he is ready to play and we'll address that on Wednesday."

When asked if Garcia is approaching last season's level of play, Gruden said, "Again, I don't have a crystal ball here. But the signs are positive, and I'm excited about that."

Griese's numbers were similar - 13 of 19, 88 yards - and Gruden didn't say who played better against the Broncos, whose defense was different than what the Bucs had seen.

"Brian played pretty well, Jeff did pretty well," Gruden said. "Denver used some strange tactics (Sunday) - they've been a man-to-man team throughout the first month of the season, and (Sunday), they rushed three 23 times.

"I thought under the circumstances, both quarterbacks did some good things."

And barring the state of Griese's arm, both in the running to get the ball against the Panthers.

"Both guys can win for us," Gruden said. "Right now, we're concerned about Griese's arm, and we're encouraged about Jeff's progress."

Pat-downs return

In accordance with league policy, pat-downs will resume at Raymond James Stadium this season, beginning with Sunday's game against Carolina.

Similar to other NFL stadiums, fans entering the Raymond James for Tampa Bay games will be subject to pat-downs by security before entering the gates. Gates will open 90 minutes before kickoff.