Jake Plumber back with Gary Kubiak

One day after they were spurned by Jake Plummer, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers finally got their veteran quarterback when Jeff Garcia signed a two-year contract yesterday that will put him in competition with Chris Simms for the starting job. Then Tampa Bay got Plummer, too.

It was an odd turn of events for the Bucs, who spent much of Friday trying to persuade Plummer to agree to a trade from the Denver Broncos. But Plummer was apparently not interested in being part of another quarterback controversy after losing his starting job last season to the rookie Jay Cutler. He said he would rather retire than join the Bucs.
But just as Garcia was in the middle of a press conference announcing his signing, the Broncos sent out a news release saying that Plummer had been traded to the Bucs for a conditional pick in the 2008 draft.
Plummer did not exactly elbow Garcia off the dais, though. Bruce Allen, the Buccaneers’ general manager, acknowledged that Plummer may decide not to play in 2007.
The Bucs hold his rights and must have the salary-cap space of more than $5 million to have him on the roster. But they can also trade him. The Houston Texans, coached by the former Broncos offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, are thought to be interested in having Plummer to supplant David Carr as the starter.
“I think right now he’s just taking time to think about it, which is fine,” Allen said of Plummer yesterday. “Our attraction to Jeff Garcia is based on what you see as a player and his talent. To say he’s second fiddle to anybody would be a mistake.”