These are a few interesting excerpts from: Garcia redeems himself with Gruden

By Michael Silver, Yahoo! Sports  

Ask Jon Gruden about Jeff Garcia, the 37-year-old quarterback who helped transform a flaccid Tampa Bay Buccaneers team into a Super Bowl contender, and the Bucs' high-energy coach flashes his trademark smirk while dropping the biggest of names.

"Jeff Garcia is a large man," Gruden says, enunciating each syllable as if it were part of a game-deciding play call. "He's Shaquille O'Neal. He's a man's man, and a hell of a player. He's enormous!

Tampa Bay (9-7) lost twice, essentially blowing...the Seattle Seahawks... but the fine china remained intact.

Gruden, ...was rumored to need a playoff appearance in '07 to avoid losing his job. But, Garcia showed up and made everything all right.

"Jeff Garcia has been the biggest difference on our team this year," veteran cornerback Ronde Barber says. "He's allowed Coach Gruden to relax a little more, because he has that type of comfort at the position he hasn't had in recent years."

We hit it off a long time ago," Garcia says of Gruden. "As much as he didn't care for me after that first workout, he grew to appreciate me. It was just a matter of time before we got together."

"It was the perfect time to join up and create a positive force (with Gruden)," Garcia says. "I love everything about him."

As for that awful first impression, Gruden blames himself: "I didn't spend enough time with him that day," the coach says. "If I had sat down with him and gotten to know him, But I was clueless. That's why Bill Walsh is in the Hall of Fame and I'm a slapdick."