Jeff Garcia Jeffrey Jason Garcia ( born February 24 , 1970 ) is a retired American football quarterback . After attending high school and junior college in Gilroy , California , Garcia played college football at San Jose State University . A four - time CFL All - Star and four - time NFL Pro Bowl selection , Garcia began his professional football career with the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League ( CFL ) as an undrafted free agent in 1994 . In 1999 , Garcia debuted in the National Football League ( NFL ) with the San Francisco 49ers . With the 49ers , Garcia made three Pro Bowl appearances ( for the 2000 , 2001 , and 2002 seasons ) and led the team to the playoffs in the 2001 and 2002 seasons . Afterwards , Garcia encountered a low point in his career , starting with a lackluster 2003 season with San Francisco then two losing seasons with Cleveland Browns in 2004 and Detroit Lions in 2005 . With the Philadelphia Eagles , Garcia would return to form late in the 2006 season , starting for an injured Donovan McNabb and leading Philadelphia to the playoffs . Garcia joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2007 and was starting quarterback for most games of the 2007 and 2008 seasons . Again , Garcia led Tampa Bay to the playoffs in 2007 and made his fourth career Pro Bowl appearance . After his stint with Tampa , Garcia returned to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009 and played only one game . In 2010 , Garcia played for the Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League . In 2011 , Garcia signed with the Houston Texans but did not play a game with the team . The following year , Garcia joined the advisory board for the United States Football League that is set to launch in the spring of 2015 . Early years . Garcia attended Gilroy High School in Gilroy , California and was a letterman in football and basketball . As a senior at Gilroy High , Garcia was a South Santa Clara County selection for the Charlie Wedemeyer All - Star Football Game and played defensive back in the game . After graduating from Gilroy in 1988 , Garcia attended Gavilan College , a local junior college . He was the starting quarterback on the football team for the 1989 season , in which he passed 2 , 038 yards for 18 touchdowns and rushed 584 yards for four touchdowns . After the season , Garcia earned junior college honorable mention All - America honors . In 1990 , Garcia transferred to San Jose State University and redshirted his first year there . From 1991 to 1993 , Garcia was starting quarterback on the San Jose State Spartans football team . Under Garcia , San Jose State went 6 - 4 - 1 in 1991 , 7 - 4 in 1992 , and 2 - 9 in 1993 . In 1991 , Garcia had a career - high 61 . 9 % completion rate at San Jose State with 99 - for - 160 passing for 1 , 519 yards , 12 touchdowns , and 5 interceptions . He would pass for 2 , 418 yards in 1992 on 209 - for - 371 passing with 15 touchdowns and 11 interceptions and a career - high 2 , 608 yards in 1993 on 196 - for - 356 passing , 21 touchdowns , and 16 interceptions . For his junior season in 1992 , Garcia earned UPI All - America honors . As of 2007 , Garcia had the most career offensive yards ( 7 , 274 ) in San Jose State history . Professional career . Garcia is one of only ten quarterbacks in NFL history who have achieved two consecutive thirty - touchdown passing seasons ( 2000 and 2001 ) at least one time in their career . The others are Steve Bartkowski , Drew Brees , Peyton Manning , Brett Favre , Dan Fouts , Dan Marino , Tom Brady , Aaron Rodgers and Y . A . Tittle . He is also one of only thirteen quarterbacks to throw a 99 - yard touchdown pass . Calgary Stampeders . At 6 - foot - 1 and 195 pounds , Garcia was considered too small for the National Football League and was not selected in the 1994 NFL Draft . In 1994 , Garcia started his professional career in Calgary with the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League . He won a place on Calgary ' s roster as their third string quarterback behind Doug Flutie and Steve Taylor when he threw two fourth - quarter touchdowns in his exhibition game appearance in 1994 . Soon he was named backup to Flutie . Garcia took over as starter in 1995 when Flutie was sidelined midway through the season with an elbow injury . In his second start filling in for Flutie , Garcia set a team record with 546 passing yards and six touchdown passes in the Labour Day game against Edmonton touching off an eventual quarterback controversy among some fans when Flutie later returned . Flutie ended up starting over Garcia in the Grey Cup that year which the Stampeders lost . After Flutie signed as a free - agent with the Toronto Argonauts in 1996 , Garcia took over as the Stampeders ' starting quarterback . During Garcia ' s three years as starter , the Stampeders finished with records of 13 - 5 , 10 - 8 , and 12 - 6 . In 1997 , Garcia won the Jeff Nicklin Memorial Trophy , an award given to the Most Outstanding Player in the CFL Western Division . Garcia led the Stampeders to the Western Final in 1996 and to the Western Semi - Final in 1997 . In 1998 , he led the team to a Grey Cup victory over the Hamilton Tiger - Cats and was named Grey Cup MVP . Garcia ' s performance included an 80 - yard , game - ending drive to set up the game winning field goal on the last play of the game . Garcia was also named as the 1998 CFL All - Star at quarterback . Garcia was inducted to the Stampeders Wall of Fame on September 14 , 2012 along with 5 others ( Rudy Linterman , Gerry Shaw , Kelvin Anderson , Sig Gutsche , Normie Kwong ) . San Francisco 49ers . Following the Grey Cup victory , Garcia was signed as a backup to Steve Young with the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League . Over the summer , he had been fighting for a spot on the roster , but early in the 1999 season , Steve Young was hit by Arizona Cardinals CB Aeneas Williams and suffered his final professional concussion , knocking him out for the year . Garcia stepped in and shared time with former Stanford quarterback Steve Stenstrom finishing the season . Garcia won his first NFL start against the Tennessee Titans 24 - 22 . After being benched for poor performances , Garcia was reinstated as the starting QB and in the final 5 games of the regular season , finished by tossing 8 TD passes to only 2 interceptions . Garcia finished his rookie season with 11 TDs and 11 INTs . 2000 . The following season , with Young retired , and despite the 49ers drafting two quarterbacks ( Giovanni Carmazzi in the third round and Tim Rattay in the seventh ) , Garcia kept the starting quarterback position and made his first Pro Bowl appearance . He set a new 49ers ' team record with 4 , 278 passing yards in the 2000 season , although the team finished with a 6 - 10 record . Garcia finished the 2000 season , his first as a full - time starter with 31 TD passes to only 10 INTs . Garcia began the season on a tear , after 7 games , he had thrown for 19 TD passes , including 3 games of 4 TD passes . 2001 . By the 2001 season , Garcia had become entrenched as the 49ers ' starting quarterback . He had a career high with 32 touchdown passes , including 21 over an eight - game span . With Garcia at quarterback , the 49ers made their first playoff appearance in almost two years , but fell to Green Bay 25 - 15 in the first round . 2002 . 2002 saw Garcia ' s offensive production drop from 31 and 32 TDs in the previous 2 seasons , to only 21 . But even though Garcia ' s numbers dropped , the 49ers won the NFC West for the first time since 1997 , with the Division clinching game coming on a last second TD pass to Terrell Owens against the Dallas Cowboys . The 49ers trailed the Cowboys 27 - 17 with under 7 minutes left in the game before Garcia picked apart the Cowboy secondary for 2 TD passes ( 1 to Tai Streets and the game winner to Terrell Owens ) . Garcia completed 36 of 55 passes for 276 and 3 4th - quarter TD passes in leading to the Division clinching win . On January 5 , 2003 , during the 2002 - 2003 playoffs , Garcia led the 49ers to a comeback win over the New York Giants , the second largest comeback victory in NFL playoff history . In the third quarter , the Giants were up 38 - 14 , with about eighteen minutes left to play . Once the 49ers regained possession of the ball , they began a comeback that saw 25 unanswered points , with San Francisco taking a 39 - 38 lead . The Giants lost an opportunity to retake the lead after a controversial call , and the improbable victory became the signature game of Garcia ' s 49er career . He threw for 331 yards , 3 touchdowns , 1 interception , and also ran for 60 yards and 1 touchdown . Garcia - Owens : 49er Duo . Garcia ' s favorite target while with the 49ers was WR Terrell Owens . In 2003 , Garcia and Owens ' s relationship turned sour upon Garcia taking issue with Owens ' s public praise for the play of backup quarterback Tim Rattay . Garcia responded with a cryptic " we can not let the sickness spread " remark , prompting Owens to wear a surgeon ' s mask at the following practice . Following Owens ' s trade to Philadelphia , Owens was asked if he thought Garcia was gay , responding by implying that he thought he was in a " Playboy " interview by saying , " If it walks like a duck , and talks like a duck , by golly , it is a duck . " Following his 2004 trade to Philadelphia , Owens began speaking out and criticizing Garcia for the 49ers ' offensive struggles during the 2003 season ( 49ers finished 7 - 9 , Garcia 18 TD passes , 13 INTs ) . Garcia revealed on multiple occasions that the pressure of following in the footsteps of Joe Montana and Steve Young had gotten to him . Upon his departure , Garcia said , " Have somebody step into my shoes and feel what I had to deal with throughout that whole time in San Francisco . The dust would start to settle , and all of a sudden , more fuel was thrown into the fire . It was such a negative situation . " In Owens ' first season with Jeff Garcia as his quarterback , Owens caught 60 passes and went on to have campaigns of 97 , 93 , 100 and 80 receptions over the next four seasons , two times leading the league in TD catches . 2003 : Final season with 49ers . The 2003 season was a disappointment for Garcia and the 49ers . Following their 2002 playoff thumping at the hands of the eventual Super Bowl Champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers , the 49ers fired Head Coach Steve Mariucci and replaced him with former Seattle Seahawks Coach , Dennis Erickson , who promised a wide open and vertical passing game . Injuries to key players on both sides of the ball , and the often reckless play of Garcia took a toll on him , as he was forced to miss 3 games during the season . The 49ers finished 7 - 9 and missed the playoffs for the first time in three seasons . Following the disappointing 2003 season , Garcia , the three - time Pro Bowler , was released , along with several other key 49er players including RB Garrison Hearst and WR Terrell Owens . Garcia had thirty - one and thirty - two passing touchdowns in the 2000 and 2001 seasons ( respectively ) , more than any other quarterback over those two seasons , and was the first 49er QB in history to have a back - to - back 30 TD pass campaigns . Garcia went to the Pro Bowl in three consecutive seasons , from 2000 to 2002 . Cleveland Browns . Garcia signed a contract with the Cleveland Browns on March 9 , 2004 . Garcia was released by the Browns after the 2004 season , in which he struggled to find any consistency and battled with injuries . On Sept . 19 , 2004 , Garcia completed 8 of 27 passes for only 71 yards and 3 interceptions in a 19 - 12 loss to the Dallas Cowboys , resulting in a career - low passer rating of 0 . Despite his struggles , Garcia was able to tie the record for longest career pass play ( 99 yards ) on a completion to André Davis on October 17 , 2004 , in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals . Detroit Lions . He was signed by the Detroit Lions to a one - year contract on March 12 , 2005 , to play for his former San Francisco head coach , Steve Mariucci , but Garcia broke his fibula in the fourth pre - season game against the Buffalo Bills on September 2 , 2005 . He started his first regular season game as quarterback for the Lions on October 23 , 2005 against his former teammates , the Browns . Garcia led the Lions to a 13 - 10 victory completing 22 of his 34 pass attempts for 210 yards , with one touchdown and zero interceptions . After the win , Mariucci named Garcia the starting quarterback for the remainder of the season , over Joey Harrington , the longtime Detroit starter . Garcia struggled later in the season and Harrington returned as the starter . Following the season , the Lions did not offer Garcia a new contract . While with the Lions Jeff Garcia threw one of the highest passes in NFL history . He literally dropped back and launched the ball almost vertically in the air in a late game attempt to make a comeback . The pass had so much hang time that the cornerback mistimed his jump and dropped the interception . Philadelphia Eagles ( 1st stint ) . On March 15 , 2006 , after consecutive frustrating seasons for the Browns and Lions , Garcia signed a one - year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles to serve as the primary backup to Donovan McNabb in the 2006 . Because McNabb was already wearing number 5 , Garcia would end up having his jersey number changed to 7 , previously worn in Philadelphia by former quarterback Ron Jaworski . Following McNabb ' s season - ending knee injury in a game against the Tennessee Titans on November 19 , 2006 , Garcia entered the game . Coach Andy Reid named Garcia as the starting quarterback for the remainder of the season over fellow backup A . J . Feeley , despite Feeley ' s popularity in Philadelphia . After a loss against the Colts on Sunday Night Football , many sportscasters ( namely Jimmy Johnson ) predicted the Eagles to be out of contention for the rest of the season . However , Garcia led the Eagles to five consecutive victories and the NFC East division championship . The rejuvenated quarterback threw ten touchdowns and only two interceptions , while posting a QB rating of 95 . 8 in eight total games played . He also made the front cover of " Sports Illustrated " following his five - game winning streak . On January 7 , 2007 , Garcia earned only his second ever playoff win , throwing for 153 yards and one touchdown in a 23 - 20 victory over the Giants . On January 13 , 2007 , Garcia and the Eagles lost to the New Orleans Saints by a score of 27 - 24 . He threw for 240 yards and a touchdown - a 75 - yard touchdown pass to Donte Stallworth - the longest in Eagles ' postseason history . Though he stated that he would love to re - sign with Philadelphia , the Eagles decided not to offer Garcia a new contract after the season . The Eagles opted to instead sign the younger A . J . Feeley to a three - year deal . Tampa Bay Buccaneers . After his run with the Eagles , Garcia signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on March 3 , 2007 , to compete for their starting position . Although his more familiar number 5 was available , Garcia decided to keep the number 7 he wore with the Eagles . For most of the 2007 regular season , Garcia was the Bucs ' starting quarterback . He also brought the Bucs to the playoffs . The Buccaneers lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Giants 24 - 14 in the NFC Wild Card Playoffs on January 6 , 2008 , with Garcia throwing for 207 yards , 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions . On January 24 , 2008 , it was announced that Garcia would be replacing Brett Favre in the Pro Bowl , making it his first Pro Bowl since 2002 . Garcia suggested in 2008 that he might stage a holdout of the Buccaneers if they didn ' t meet his contract extension demands . He was in the final year of the two - year contract . He was expected to make $ 2 . 75 million that season , including a $ 750 , 000 roster bonus . Jeff Garcia stayed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , and started in the 2008 opening game against the New Orleans Saints . After a poor performance , he was demoted to third - string on the depth chart and placed on the inactive roster . However , following an injury to quarterback Brian Griese in the fourth week of the season , Jeff Garcia started in his place . During a victory over the Seattle Seahawks , Garcia surpassed 40 , 000 yards for his career when combining his statistics from both the CFL and NFL , becoming the twentieth player to accomplish the feat . Oakland Raiders . Garcia signed a one - year deal with the Oakland Raiders on April 6 , 2009 . As he did in Tampa Bay , Bruce Gradkowski changed his number to 5 to allow Garcia to wear number 7 . He was expected to back up JaMarcus Russell in the 2009 season , but was released during final cuts on September 5 , 2009 . Philadelphia Eagles ( 2nd stint ) . After Eagles ' quarterback Donovan McNabb suffered a fractured rib in Week One , the Eagles signed Garcia to a one - year contract on September 14 , 2009 . He was released on September 29 , following Michael Vick ' s return from suspension . During this short stint with the Eagles , he wore jersey number 9 . Omaha Nighthawks . Garcia was one of the signature players of the United Football League and his former team , the Omaha Nighthawks . He won two offensive player of the week awards during the 2010 season having produced a game - winning drive in two separate games . Houston Texans . On December 6 , 2011 , Garcia signed with the Houston Texans , following an injury to starting quarterback Matt Schaub . Jake Delhomme was also signed by Houston , as both he and Garcia would backup T . J . Yates . Post - playing career . Garcia joined the advisory board of the revival of the United States Football League ( USFL ) in May 2012 . Personal life . Garcia is the third of seven children born to Bob and Linda ( née Elder ) Garcia . His father is a former athletic director and football coach at Gavilan College in his hometown of Gilroy , California . A pair of twin girls died before Garcia ' s birth . His younger brother Jason drowned on a family camping trip in 1977 when Garcia was seven , and fourteen months later his younger sister Kimberly died after falling out of a truck . His two surviving sisters , Jene and Melissa , were born after the deaths of Jason and Kimberly . Garcia has said that much of his drive stems from trying to make his parents happy after the deaths of his siblings . His maternal grandfather , Maurice " Red " Elder , was a football star at Kansas State University in the 1940s ; both played in the East - West Shrine Game while in college , the only grandfather / grandson duo to do so . Elder was a longtime coach at Gilroy High School . Garcia donated money to refurbish the athletic field at the school , and in 2005 , the field was renamed Garcia - Elder Field to honor both of them . Garcia , who is of Mexican and Irish heritage , has also done various charitable work in support of the Hispanic Scholarship Fund . Garcia married Carmella DeCesare , the 2004 " Playboy " Playmate of the Year , on April 21 , 2007 , in San Martin , California . As of June 2012 they reside in Rancho Santa Fe , California with their two daughters , Presley and Faith , and two sons , Jason and Jax .