Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Pirate's Life for Jeff

If you ask me, the Buccaneers dodged a bullet when Jake Plummer decided to retire rather than challenge Chris Simms for the starting job in Tampa Bay.

The Bucs are now reportedly saddled with Philadelphia comeback sensation Jeff Garcia, who was rumored to go to the Oakland Raiders for this season. This is great news for both teams, as Garcia is coming of a high note in his once wilting career (almost leading the suprise division-champ Eagles to the NFC championship), and the Raiders would present the 37-year old former Pro Bowl Quarterback a myriad of problems.

Garcia is an emotional player, and the hunger he still has from his 6-2 run with the Eagles will make him a fierce competitor in Tampa Bay. The good news is, this is a win-win situation for the Bucs. Garcia will either push Chris Simms to his potential in training camp, making the young quarterback the franchise player he was always supposed to be, or he will be a great short-term solution for the Buccaneers by taking the reigns himself. If the former occurs, the Bucs will have both a great starting quarterback and a great backup.

With a rejuvenated offensive line and the possible acquisition of Calvin Johnson in the draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be a force to be reckoned with...

Re-Jake-ted

That's right, moments after Rumors about Jake Plummer going to the Buccaneers surfaced, the former Broncos QB announced his retirement.

Plummer, who was benched in favor of Rookie Jay Cutler from Vanderbuilt last season, was most likely going to be reunited with Houston Head coach Gary Kubiak in free agency. Instead, Plummer looked as if he was heading to Tampa Bay, and decided to end his NFL career with 161 touchdowns and 161 interceptions.

I was never a huge fan of "Jake the Snake", but I did like the idea of him being used as a fire under Houston Quarterback David Carr. Unless Plummer pulls a Junior Seau, every other free agent quarterback's stock just jumped up a few notches.