Stalled Talks Puzzle Garcia Strange is probably the best way to describe what's happening this week at One Buc Place. When the Bucs gathered for their first trio of offseason workouts, they had one player participating who says he's dissatisfied with the status of his contract talks, and one who says he is satisfied with the status of his contract talks but is not participating. The unhappy participant is quarterback Jeff Garcia; the happy non-participant is running back Earnest Graham. "The workouts are all voluntary right now and we've got some family things we're doing, so that's why I'm not there," said Graham, who is seeking to extend a contract that has one year remaining at $605,000. "It's not because of the contract. That's going good; it's almost there. And I plan to be there when the next voluntary workouts begin after the draft." Garcia will be on hand for those workouts, too. But if there's no change in the status of his contract talks, he'll participate grudgingly. "That's just it; nothing's happening with the contract," said Garcia, who is entering the final year of a two-year deal worth $7 million. "My agent has talked to them. We're trying to work something out, but it's not happening. I don't plan on missing anything, and it's only April, so there's hopefully still time to work things out. That's why I'm not getting too caught up in it right now. But it's not where I'd like it to be." Though he is 38, Garcia thought that after solving the Bucs' quarterback problem and leading them to the playoffs last year, he would be rewarded with an extension. The Bucs, who solved a similar problem by extending cornerback Ronde Barber's contract in August 2006, still may have plans to do that before the 2008 season begins. Bruce Allen did not respond to a request for comment on the matter Wednesday. The sides are talking, but they're not making much headway. "There are contract issues that Jeff is justifiably frustrated about, but he will honor his contract and we'll continue to try to get those issues resolved," said Steve Baker, Garcia's agent. Baker would not say what it will take to make Garcia happy, but it's likely that a deal that raises Garcia's salary to that of the roughly $7 million average for starting NFL quarterbacks is one of his goals. There is no question that Garcia's age is a factor. Garcia will be 39 when the 2009 season begins, so the Bucs are no doubt hesitant to throw a lot of money at him at this time. Garcia, though, is not believed to be asking for a lot of money. He wants his 2008 payout to match his stats as a starter and he wants to recover the seven-figure incentive he would have earned had the team's decision to rest him down the stretch - after clinching the NFC South - not kept him from taking 70 percent of the snaps. Anything short of that almost certainly will leave Garcia an unhappy player in 2008. And that's something he never thought he'd be in Tampa. Having longed for the opportunity to play for Jon Gruden, he jumped at the chance to make it a reality in March 2007. He immediately terminated negotiations with the Oakland Raiders to sign with Tampa Bay. His deal included a $3 million signing bonus, $2 million base salaries for 2007 and 2008, incentive bonuses worth $2.5 million as well as a $750,000 roster bonus for this year that Garcia will earn simply by making the opening-day roster. The Bucs seemed to get their money's worth in the first year as the partnership resulted in Tampa Bay returning to the playoffs at a time when previous failures had left Gruden and Allen on the hot seat. A year later, it seems the partnership is on rocky ground. Whether it stays there and eventually disintegrates seems to be up to the Bucs at this point. Roy Cummings, The Tampa Tribune 12 April 2008