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Starved for a star QB, Jon Gruden goes for quantity over quality.
By David Fleming

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A few weeks ago, bucs coach Jon Gruden looked over his roster and joked with GM Bruce Allen that just once before he retires, he'd like to work with a franchise quarterback. The notoriously tough-on-QBs Gruden has run through nine starters in six years as Tampa Bay's coach and will enter June minicamp with not four, not five, but six passers on his depth chart. None of them was selected in the first round. "At some point, I'd like to have that guy who's going to be the model of the franchise," Gruden says.

Until then, he'll keep hoarding them in the hopes of stumbling upon the next Tom Brady. It's not as crazy as it sounds. Gruden understands that most elite passersincluding seven of the top 10 QBs in passing yards from last season—are drafted after the first round and developed over several years. What's more, in his complex West Coast offense, it often takes several years before Gruden can tell for sure whether a QB can cut it for him. Finally, starter Jeff Garcia's age (38) and full-throttle style demand that the Bucs have multiple backups. "People make light of the way Jon collects QBs," says Bucs QB coach Greg Olson, "but he'll tell you, 'I'm not collecting, I'm searching.' "

Garcia, who made his fourth Pro Bowl in 2007 but has only one year remaining on his contract, enters camp as the heavy favorite to start for the defending NFC South champs. The top backup will likely be Brian Griese, though he'll have to fight off Luke McCown, who showed a big arm and bad decisionmaking in three starts in 2007 (Bruce Gradkowski, who started 11 games as a rookie in 2006 and completed only 54% of his passes), was cut on May 30. Then there's former third-round pick Chris Simms, who hasn't played since having his spleen removed in September 2006 and reportedly wants to be traded (he'll likely be cut instead), and Jake Plummer, who has rebuffed the Bucs' attempts to talk him out of retirement. (Tampa owns his contract rights should he play again.)

But wait, there's more. This spring, the Bucs used a fifth-round pick on Josh Johnson, who has 4.5 speed and who threw for 43 TDs and just one pick last year while running a version of the West Coast at San Diego. Meanwhile, Chucky brought in Nebraska product Sam Keller for a tryout but passed on signing him.

"Franchise quarterbacks come in all rounds," Olson says. "All I know is that Jon would love to have one."

Maybe he already does.

DESIGNATED PACKER BACKER

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David Ortiz stands 6'4" and weighs 230—the perfect profile for a mauling tight end. But there was no football in the Dominican Republic, where he grew up, so Ortiz had to settle for becoming a huge NFL fan. Naturally, the Red Sox DH roots hardest for the Patriots, but he also keeps close tabs on wife Tiffany's favorite team, the Packers. So we asked Big Papi what advice he'd give the man who will replace a legend, Aaron Rodgers.

When I came up with the Twins, in 1997, I stepped in and played for Scott Stahoviak. He was just all right, so it wasn't like I had to fill big shoes like Aaron does. I looked up to Kirby Puckett. He would tell me to just get out there and play and have fun. So that's definitely what I would tell Aaron: Go out there and have fun and try not to put too much pressure on yourself.

And don't worry about what people are saying on the radio or in the papers. Just listen to the coaches and your teammates. Keep things easy. You can ask for advice, nothing wrong with that. But for the most part, you have to keep quiet and watch the veterans, otherwise somebody will rip on you.

Also, he's got to stay rested. You can't play when you're tired. There's no way. Look at the Red Sox. We went to Japan for less than a week, came back, had one day off, a week later we played 20 games in a row, had one day off, then played 16 games. What the hell is that? So a good schedule will make a difference for Aaron. Beyond that, he's just got to experience the game and play well. Simple as that.

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