Eagles Have Not Made Jeff Garcia a Contract Offer Yet

With the start of free agency approaching in the next week, Jeff Garcia's agent informs us that the Birds have not made any offer to the QB who played extremely well in Donovan McNabb's absence this past season. Garcia's agent, Steve Baker, made it known that Jeff "really, really, really wants to return to the Eagles."

But for that to happen, Baker said, the Birds need to offer Garcia a contract - something Baker said has not occurred, as the days dwindle toward the March 2 advent of free agency. Baker said that in his last conversation with the team, a few weeks ago, Eagles officials said they wanted the situation resolved before the start of free agency.

Baker said he won't make a proposal to the team without testing the market, so unless the Eagles come to him with a bid, Garcia seems unlikely to re-up before March 2.

It's no surprise to anyone that the Eagles play hard ball with their players and contracts. If I had to make a prediction regarding Jeff Garcia, I'd guess that they will offer him a contract significantly less than what he could find in another city -- if they make him an offer at all. The Eagles are not known for over paying free agents and certainly not in the business of over paying back ups. Don't forget the Eagles have a capable backup in A.J. Feeley as well.

Perhaps my favorite part of Les Bowens' piece is when Garcia's agent talks about Philadelphia. For all of you Philly haters, maybe you should come live here and root for our team and see what it's like.

"The Philadelphia experience was one of the highlights of Jeff's career," Baker said. "It would be extremely hard for him to leave Philadelphia. My suspicion is that he would leave substantial money on the table in order to return to the Eagles."