Other People Were At The OTA, Too

With Jeff Garcia's successful media whore job yesterday, it's easy to forget that other stuff happened, too.

Brian Griese said he's happy to be back in Tampa.

"I know what kind of organization this is and know how they handle their business, but I did have to give [Gruden] a little a bit [a grief]," said Griese with a chuckle.

Griese also responded when asked directly if he was excited to play for [Jon] Gruden again.

"I am, but don't tell him that," said Griese.

Griese says all the right stuff about coming back and how he wasn't the best fit in Chicago. He also gives a couple details on why he left Tampa in the first place.

Cadillac Williams was optimistic about the season and his place in it.

"Me, personally, once training camp starts, I (think) I will be on the field and be able to do some things. I do. I feel like by July, I should be ready to play ball."

Like I said, optimistic. There's no way he doesn't start the season on the PUP, but I can see him maybe getting off of it by the week ten deadline if his rehab is really going as well as he says. But can he ever be the same as he was in 2005? Hell, he wasn't the same as he was in 2005 when he was healthy in 2006.

On a related note, Earnest Graham still hasn't attended an OTA this offseason.

After missing the first set of OTA's, Graham said he had a family conflict as to the reason why he could not attend. It was unclear whether Graham had another conflict that prevented him from attending the practice, or if he was missing due to being unhappy with his contract.

These OTAs are voluntary, but I think it's pretty apparent that Graham is sending a message that he wants a new deal. It has been widely discussed that Graham would be one of the first guys to get a new contract after his performance last year, so I wouldn't be surprised to see something sooner rather than later. If it doesn't happen by the first mandatory OTA, though, I wonder if he'll continue to stay away. The $14,000 per day fines add up fast.