Only veteran Jeff Garcia has had success as a starting QB if you don’t count Jake Plummer who looks like he will retire.  Garcia doesn’t have a great throwing arm, but you don’t really need one in Gruden’s version of the West Coast Offense based on timing and precision.  Garcia also still has good mobility despite his advancing age and that should help him out behind Tampa’s young offensive line.  Garcia was awesome last season for the Eagles as he led them to the playoffs after Donovan McNabb went down to injury.  Garcia played in 8 games (6 starts) for the Eagles last season and he completed 116 of 188 (61.7%) passes for 1,309 yards with 10 TD passes and 2 interceptions (95.8 QB Rating).  Garcia also carried the football 25 times for 87 yards (3.5 ypc).  Garcia saved his career last season by the way he played for the Eagles as that was the first season he played well after leaving San Francisco.  He has played in 99 games (92 starts) in the NFL and he’s completed 1,811 of 2,973 passes (60.9%) for 20,385 yards with 136 TD passes and only 73 interceptions (86.4 QB Rating).  He also has carried the football 395 times for 1,878 yards (4.8 ypc) with 24 TD runs.

Second year man Bruce Gradkowski took over for Chris Simms when he was injured last season and he has appeared to pass him on the depth chart so far in workouts.  That’s kind of amazing seeing how they gave Simms big bucks to return this season.  Gradkowski has good mobility but he often throws into tight coverage and his arm isn’t strong enough to tempt fate and the results are often not good.  Gradkowski played in 13 games (11 starts) and he completed 177 of 328 passes (54%) for 1,661 yards with 9 TD passes and interceptions as a rookie (65.9 QB Rating).  He also has carried the football 41 times for 161 yards (3.9 ypc).

Chris Simms was horrible in the first three games of last season until he was severely injured in a brutal game against the Carolina Panthers.  After the game Simms was rushed to the hospital and had his spleen removed.  The Bucs should have just let Simms walk because he’s not a good QB and chances are he never will be.  His throws have no arc and a lot of them get batted down or intercepted.  In his 3 games last season (all starts), he completed 58 of 106 passes (54.7%) for 585 yards with 1 TD and 7 INTs (46.3 QB Rating).  He also carried the football 4 times for 7 yards (1.8 ypc) with 1 TD.  Simms will have to fight his way up the depth chart as he’s currently listed as the #3 QB….we’ll see how that works out for him.  Simms has now played in 19 games (15 starts) and he’s completed 291 of 492 passes (59.1%) for 3,087 yards with 12 TD passes and 17 INTs (71.2 QB Rating).  He also has carried the football 30 times for 52 yards (1.7 ypc) with 1 TD run.

Luke McCown is currently the #4 QB on the Bucs.  He didn’t play last season and he’s had numerous problems with his knees so far in his career.  He used to be mobile and his only experience in the NFL was with the Cleveland Browns who were injury ravaged at the time so he didn’t have much help.  He tried to make things happen and it often resulted in positive plays for the opposition.  McCown has played in 5 games (4 starts) in his career and he’s completed 48 of 98 (49%) passes for 608 yards with 4 TD passes and 7 interceptions (52.6 QB Rating).  He also carried the football 6 times for 25 yards (4.2 ypc).

The Bucs traded for disgruntled ex-Broncos’ QB Jake Plummer in the off-season but he’s stated that he would rather retire than play for the Bucs.  Maybe the Bucs will be lucky if he doesn’t show up after how poorly he played last season in Denver when he lost his job to a rookie QB as Denver was making a playoff push.  Plummer played in all 16 games (11 starts) for the Broncos last season and he completed 175 of 317 (55.2%) passes for 1,994 yards with 11 TD passes and 13 interceptions (68.8 QB Rating).  He also carried the football 36 times for 112 yards (3.1 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Plummer should take Coach Mike Shanahan out for dinner and a few drinks as his career numbers look respectable because he played well in Denver’s system.  He has played in 143 games (136 starts) and he has completed 2,484 of 4,350 passes (57.1%) for 29,253 yards with 161 TD passes and 161 INTs (74.6 QB Rating).  He also has carried the football 428 times for 1,853 yards (4.3 ypc) with 17 TD runs.

What a shame to loose the potentially one of the best Full Backs for Tampa Bucs since Alstott….Jon Goldsberry. Talk about a guy that has heart and integrity he is it. He is one of the best full backs around. Wouldn’t it have been smart to keep him on and train a great backup for Alstott? Sometimes you have to wonder what the cuts are based on. If it was an ability decision, marketing or what? Ability he has it all, being able to market well that would have been easy he is very articulate and speaks well on his feet. I am sure he will get picked up soon, a gem like this one surely will not sit long on the sidelines. All we can to is watch him leave.

Kenneth Darby could wind up being a steal for the Bucs.  He was distracted last season due to a sickness in the family and that affected him on the field.  The Bucs hope he comes to Training Camp focused because there’s a lot to like about his game.  Darby is 5′10″, 211 pounds and he runs a 4.6 40 so he doesn’t have blazing speed but he has just enough to get the job done.  He will need to work on his toughness when running inside and he also will need to become a better blocker.  Darby played in 47 games (30 starts) at Alabama and he carried the ball 702 times for 3,324 yards (4.7 ypc) with 11 TD runs.  He also has caught 70 passes for 340 yards (4.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

The Bucs got a perfect player for their defensive system in Marcus Hamilton.  His speciality is zone coverage which is exactly what the Bucs like to run.  That will mask Hamilton’s 4.6 40 speed.  Hamilton is 5′11″, 192 pounds but he plays much bigger than that when he’s supporting the run as he tries to drive through the ballcarrier.  Hamilton also is an excellent special teams player and he should make an impact there for the Bucs this season.  Hamilton played in 50 games (32 starts) at Virginia and he made 185 tackles, 10.5 tackles for a loss, forced 1 fumble, recovered 1 fumble, broke up 19 passes and intercepted 15 passes that he returned 127 yards.

The Bucs took a flyer on Chris Denman who could develop into a decent player if he works hard in the weight room and develops a mean streak.  Denman is a decent run blocker but he struggles in dealing with fast pass rushers which could mean that his future could be at guard.  Denman is 6′6″, 304 pounds so he has room to add more muscle to his frame which would serve him well.  Denman played in 48 games and he started 46 of them at Fresno State so he probably does have a few tricks up his sleeve.