He has one of the NFL’s most high-profile jobs, yet remains a virtual unknown to the pro football masses, particularly those residing outside of the San Francisco Bay area.
One day in the near future, he undoubtedly will be the answer to a trivia question: Who replaced Steve Young? That’s almost akin to asking who preceded Joe Montana. It sort of stumps you for a minute.
His name is Jeff Garcia. He has the looks of a surfer boy at 6 feet 1 and 195 pounds; he has short-cropped blond hair and the last name of a rock `n’ roll legend. But for now, he’s just another what’s his name trying to follow in the footsteps of a legendary quarterback.
“There are some huge expectations,” Garcia said. “The quarterback position for the 49ers has been held by two great ones, and both are going to be in the Hall of Fame. (Montana already is.) So there are very high expectations, and there is not a lot of room for error because of those expectations.”
Garcia officially became the heir apparent to Young in the summer. Young announced his retirement because of health concerns stemming from a series of concussions he incurred during the course of his career. So, in effect, Garcia is the guy whose name might not ring a bell, even though he replaced a famous guy who got his bell rung a few too many times.
Still, it was quite a splendid career for Young, who passed for nearly 30,000 yards and 221 touchdowns while finishing with the highest quarterback ranking (112.8) in NFL history. He also helped lead the Niners to a 49-26 rout of San Diego in Super Bowl XXIX.
Young had been in the same position as Garcia in 1991. He was trying to replace the irreplaceable Montana, a man regarded as the NFL’s greatest quarterback. All Montana did was win four Super Bowl titles, including a record three Super Bowl MVP awards. He passed for more than 40,000 yards and has the second-highest quarterback rating in history (92.3).
Few have had as hard a task as Garcia, who replaces Young, who replaced Montana. It was a lot to ask Young to follow Montana. And now to replace Young after Montana?
“Oh, jeez, it’s brutal to try to do that,” said Bill Walsh, vice president/general manager of the 49ers. “But we know this: Jeff Garcia has got great courage. He’s poised and self-confident, and he’s such a great competitor.”
He also has experience with a championship team–although not one in the NFL. Garcia came to the 49ers as a free agent last season after spending five years in the Canadian Football League. He led the Calgary Stampede to the Grey Cup title in 1998 while earning Most Valuable Player honors.
Before that, Garcia had been a three-year starter (1991-93) at San Jose State, where he ranks first in school history with 7,274 yards of total offense.
He was signed to be the primary backup to Young. But after Young sustained a season-ending injury–one that eventually forced him into retirement–Garcia was pressed into the starting lineup Oct. 3, 1999. And what a start. He beat eventual AFC champion Tennessee, 24-22, in his first start. He passed for 2,544 yards and 11 touchdowns last season.
Although his only other victory was over the Atlanta Falcons, he was one of the hottest quarterbacks in the league during the final five games of the season. During that span, he ranked third in the NFL in passing yards (886).
This is what the Niners had hoped to build on, even though that growth wasn’t always evident against the Falcons in the season opener, when Garcia passed for 253 yards and three touchdowns to go along with a third-quarter interception returned for a touchdown that virtually sealed the 36-28 loss.
“He threw for a bunch of yards and some touchdowns,” 49ers coach Steve Mariucci said. “And he will become more consistent as the season progresses as he get more playing time, more practice time, that sort of thing.”
Garcia realizes he has to improve his consistency. “I can’t go through those highs and lows,” he said. “I’ve got to be a little bit more steady than that.”
Though he hasn’t won many games–he’s 5-11 as a starter–Garcia seems to have won over his teammates.
“He’s an intense performer and will be a high-percentage passer as the year goes by,” Walsh said. “He’ll run more often in the future. … So, he can be a real spark for our team.”
Garcia gradually is growing more comfortable at his position. He can take solace in knowing that he is not alone in his quest to try and replace a legend. Jay Fiedler certainly knows the feeling in Miami. The same certainly can be said for Denver’s Brian Griese, whom the Niners face Dec. 23 at Mile High Stadium.
“It’s a completely different situation this year as far as my outlook goes,” Garcia said. “I do feel a lot more comfortable with what we’re doing. I have a better understanding of the defense. I also have a better understanding of what we’re trying to do offensively.
“It’s still a matter of ironing out the kinks. I’m going to have to watch the films and continue to be hard on myself in a way. But this year is so much different as far as my confidence goes and as far as knowing the game.”
Jeff Garcia is not going to make anyone forget about Montana or Young. But he’s going to continue to work at being Jeff Garcia, even if the name still doesn’t ring a bell.
