Former Stampeders, Pro Bowl QB Jeff Garcia insists ‘not a lot that differentiates’ CFL players from NFL
Photo courtesy: Calgary Stampeders.
Jeff Garcia is on the short list of the most recognizable names ever to make the jump from the CFL to the NFL, but he believes more players are capable of doing so than many realize.
“There’s not a lot that differentiates players that are in the CFL and players that are in the NFL. It’s really about the opportunity, and when the opportunity presents itself, being ready to strike,” Garcia told Bob ‘The Moj’ Marjanovich from Super Bowl LX radio row.
“Now you may not get many of those, so you’d better be on top of it. But there’s also the political aspect of things, and how that changes the outlook. You could be better than a quarterback on this roster, but because they invested a draft pick into that guy, he’s gonna get every opportunity to fail, and you’re not gonna be given the chance just because they wasted a draft pick on him, which is their fault.”
Garcia spent five seasons in the CFL with the Calgary Stampeders from 1994 to 1998, beginning as the backup to fellow legend Doug Flutie before stepping in due to injury in 1995 and officially taking over the top job in 1996. He was a four-time West Division all-star, while throwing for 16,442 yards, 111 touchdowns, and 52 interceptions. The Gilroy, Cal., native also rushed for 2,358 yards and 24 majors in his time north of the border.
The 55-year-old recalls being ready to put down roots in Calgary following the 1998 season, having already purchased a house and opened a restaurant in town. Instead, he got the opportunity to work out for five NFL teams — the Jacksonville Jaguars, St. Louis Rams, Oakland Raiders, Miami Dolphins, and San Francisco 49ers — and fielded contract offers from both the Fins and Niners. He would go on to sign with his childhood team in San Francisco, kicking off a 12-year tenure in the NFL.
While many CFL stars have signed deals in the league down south in the prime of their careers only to be sent packing, Garcia credits his success to having the right person advocating for him.
“The major reason for me signing with San Francisco was Bill Walsh. Bill Walsh was in my corner,” he explained, referencing the Hall of Fame coach who led the Niners to three Super Bowls.
“Bill Walsh, who was now a part of the management side, had come back from coaching at Stanford University and had watched me play against his Stanford team (with San Jose State). On that day, when I played against Bill and the Stanford Cardinal, he said I did some Joe Montana-like things, and that kid can play. I always remembered that, and so I struck up a relationship with Bill, and he tried to help me at different points of my years in the CFL, getting me opportunities with teams.”
While Walsh’s stamp of approval wasn’t without its added challenges, Garcia knows that it provided him with greater investment and opportunity than other recent CFL quarterbacks who have attempted to make the NFL jump, like B.C.’s Nathan Rourke.
“I really came into the 49ers, probably, at a prime time,” he admitted. “Now, I wasn’t (head coach Steve) Mariucci’s guy. Ty Detmer, who they had traded to Cleveland, was his guy. He had him in Green Bay when he had Favre and Brunell. He had a relationship with Ty Detmer, and when the Niners traded him to Cleveland or let him go, now, all of a sudden, I’m Bill Walsh’s guy. That kind of rubbed Mooch a little bit wrong at first, and I had to prove to Mooch that I was capable and that I belonged. But they had Steve Young at the time. They didn’t figure that they’d need Jeff Garcia anytime soon.”
That changed in a hurry when Young suffered a season-ending concussion in 1999 and retired that offseason. Garcia would take over as the starter and was selected to three straight Pro Bowls from 2000 to 2002 as San Francisco’s QB1.
The six-foot-one, 205-pound pivot left the Niners following the 2003 season and would go on to play for the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Oakland Raiders, and Houston Texans, making one more Pro Bowl in 2007. In 125 career NFL games, he threw for 25,537 yards, 161 touchdowns, and 83 interceptions while rushing for 2,140 yards and 26 majors.
Even with all those accomplishments in the NFL, it is his final CFL game that still stands out as the defining moment of his career. Garcia left the three-down league on a high note, leading the Stampeders to a 26-24 victory over Hamilton in the 86th Grey Cup while being named the game’s MVP.
“I think the Grey Cup title is right there at the top,” Garcia said. “Anytime you compete in a team sport, and you accomplish a goal that you set out to accomplish, that you had your eyes set upon at the beginning of the year, and you’re able to carry that on through to fruition, to accomplish that is the greatest experience in sports. Doesn’t matter what level or where you’re at in accomplishing that. That, to me, is one of the ultimates to be able to do that in Calgary, with the Calgary Stampeders, with the teammates that I had.”
While Garcia was never able to compete in a Super Bowl, the gap between the value of that championship and the Grey Cup may be even smaller than the difference in talent between the players that compete in them.
