Jeff Garcia looks in the mirror these days and remains undeterred. Though he has a nasty gash across the bridge of his nose and a pair of black eyes that make him look like a raccoon, he says he isn't ready to quit football just yet. ...more

December 27, 2008

PLAYER OF THE GAME Philip Rivers is in rare company. But not just because he leads all NFL quarterbacks in passer rating. Rivers, who completed 21 of 31 throws for 287 yards and a career-best four touchdowns Sunday, is one of only two quarterbacks to leave a game against the Bucs at Raymond James Stadium this year with a better passer rating than he had going in. Rivers came into the game with a 101.4 mark. In beating the Bucs he posted a mark of 136.7 and he did so rather effortlessly. Aided by a rushing attack that kept the Bucs off-balance and perhaps by a defense that played a little soft in coverage, Rivers moved the ball around to a variety of receivers and quickly drove the Chargers downfield in drive after drive. Scouts will tell you Rivers has a tendency to run hot and cold and that he sometimes tightens up in big games. Maybe they're right. But Rivers was as hot as could be and there was nothing tight about him. ...more

December 22, 2008

A thick blanket of gray clouds cast a pall over One Buc Place on Monday morning. If you looked hard enough, though, the cloud cover was lined in silver. ...more

December 16, 2008

TONIGHT'S GAME BROWNS AT EAGLES, 8:30, ESPN ABOUT THE BROWNS: QB Ken Dorsey makes his first career start on "Monday Night Football" and he's facing a premier pass rush. Jamal Lewis needs 200 more rushing yards to reach the 1,000-yard plateau, but this plodding offense has struggled all season. One of the few positives through a 4-9 start is that plus-8 turnover differential. ...more

December 15, 2008

Tim Tebow will go for two against a pair of talented quarterbacks from the Big 12 when the Heisman Trophy is handed out Saturday night. ...more

December 10, 2008

You look at his age and can't help but shake your head - mostly in wonder. Jeff Garcia, the bios all say, is 38. But there's nothing 38 about Garcia's play on the field. ...more

November 30, 2008

Donovan McNabb got pulled for Kevin Kolb again. This time, he earned a seat on the bench with a superb performance instead of a stinker. ...more

November 27, 2008

Saints quarterback Drew Brees has set the NFL on fire this season, but the hottest quarterback in the league right now might be the Bucs' Jeff Garcia. ...more

November 27, 2008

PLAYER OF THE GAME Jeff Garcia took a beating Sunday. He was sacked six times and he lost two fumbles, including one that helped the Lions build their 17-point first-quarter lead. Without Garcia, though, the Bucs probably don't beat back the Lions and win this game. Though he admits he was sloppy at times, there were also times when Garcia was as precise as a hand-crafted timepiece. He finished the game with a 137.5 passer rating that was largely a result of the fact he completed 13 of 18 passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns and was not picked off. His biggest plays came in the second quarter, when he solved the Bucs' red zone problems by making sure they scored before they got there. With pressure in his face on both plays, Garcia found Ike Hilliard 36 yards downfield for one score and Jerramy Stevens 24 yards downfield for another that proved to be the game-winner. ...more

November 24, 2008

Football is supposed to be a young man's game. At least that's what the Cardinals believed when they selected quarterback Matt Leinart out of Southern Cal with the 10th pick in the 2006 draft. ...more

November 23, 2008