Why Tampa Bay should go after Donovan McNabb in the off-season

Buccaneers Head Coach Jon Gruden loves quarterbacks, it has been said that Gruden dates his QB’s but does not marry them. He came close with Gannon in Oakland and may have tied the knot with Brad Johnson if he were a few years younger. If the Buccaneers head office is smart all that can change in the off-season.

I am in no way bashing Jeff Garcia or the great work he has done in Tampa over the last 2 years. I think he is a very talented QB and has a knack for winning, he has done wonders to revitalize the Bucs offense. The reality is that Garcia is approaching his 39th birthday and it is unsure how much longer he will be able to be successful with his throw your body in there style of quarterbacking. I admire Garcia’s toughness and desire to win but he looks so frail when he scrambles out of the pocket that I am afraid he is one hit away from having his bones turned to gravel.

Now, McNabb is not known for invincibility either but when he is on the field he has all the tools to take the Tampa Bay offense to an elite level to match their defense. Behind only Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, McNabb has the highest winning percentage of all active QB’s yet McNabb has never gotten the respect he deserved in Philadelphia. From being booed on draft day to the recent mid-game benching for Kevin Kolb with puking and Super Bowl exhaustion sprinkled in between, the fans in Philly have always found reasons to hate McNabb and have been trying to push him out the door for years now.

Let’s hope Philadelphia fans keep pushing because if McNabb found his way to Tampa he would find himself with a young talented team with a great o-line to protect him. If McNabb found his way to Tampa, Jon Gruden would find himself with an experience quarterback (which he loves) who is 10 seasons deep in the west coast offense (which Gruden is a master of). Gruden will have a well-versed student for the young QB’s on the roster McCown and Josh Johnson (or whoever Gruden drafts or trades for next) while they develop into the full-time starter in 3 or 4 years down the road.

So in the off-season it is up to Tampa Bay’s front office to make the necessary calls and to get Gruden a Huge engagement ring so he can finally make that commitment to his QB. Let’s hope he goes to Jared’s.