The cliché the third time's a charm would not apply in the case of former Eagles quarterback Jeff Garcia.
Nonetheless, there are multiple reports that the Eagles have been talking to the 40-year-old about joining together for a third go-around.
On Saturday, Les Bowen of the Philadelphia Daily News reported that Garcia had "tossed his helmet into the ring" as the "ideal guy to mentor" new starting quarterback Kevin Kolb. Fox 29 in Philadelphia poured more fuel on the fire by reporting that Garcia and the Eagles recently spoke for an hour.
Garcia first signed with the Eagles to backup Donovan McNabb in 2006. After McNabb suffered a season-ending ACL injury, Garcia rallied the Eagles to win the NFC East which was highlighted by a thrilling Christmas evening win in Dallas over the Cowboys. The Eagles beat the Giants in the Wild Card round before falling to the Saints in the divisional round.
For someone who played for down-on-their-luck franchises like Cleveland and Detroit, the chance to lead a playoff contender re-energized Garcia's career. Garcia's fiery and emotional style of play made him a fan-favorite among the Eagles faithful.
Garcia left the Eagles and signed with Tampa Bay following the 2006 playoff run and led them to the playoffs the following season. Garcia and the Bucs should have been back in the playoffs in 2008, but Tampa Bay collapsed down the stretch and lost its regular season finale to Oakland which paved the way for the Eagles to make the run to the NFC title game. Garcia signed with Oakland last off-season, but reportedly requested to be released before the start of the season. When McNabb was injured in Week 1 of this past season with a rib injury, Garcia was signed as an emergency backup for two games.
A four-time Pro Bowl quarterback, Garcia has completed 61.6 percent of his passes for 25,537 passing yards with 161 touchdowns against 83 interceptions.
-- Posted by Chris McPherson 12:36 p.m., April 11
