Jets Claim Former Patriots OT Antonio Garcia

[JetNation]

Ian Rapoport of the NFL network is reporting that the Jets have claimed offensive lineman Antonio Garcia off of waivers from the New England Patriots.

The #Jets have claimed former #Patriots OL Antonio Garcia, source said. He was waived with a non-football injury but said recently he was cleared.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 14, 2018

Garcia was let go by the Patriots after spending his entire rookie season sidelined with blood clots in his lungs.  After being cleared to resume play, the Patriots cut ties with the former Troy product who reportedly dropped 40 pounds while receiving treatment for his blood clots.

In need of depth along their offensive line, the move is a no-brainer for GM Mike Maccagnan.

The post Jets Claim Former Patriots OT Antonio Garcia appeared first on NY Jets News.

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[Jetscreen]

Well, I guess this rained down from the heavens?? The Jets OL sucks so bad and needed people so bad that I was going to offer my services. Blood clots in his lungs?? Only smokers get that. Just kidding. Worth taking a look see, but Mac is still an irresponsible A$$hole.

[Beerfish]

 

[The Crusher]

Sounds good to me. If he passes the physical give him a jersey and let him go.

[Bugg]

Not a bad roll of the dice. No down side at all.

[joewilly12]

Risk vs reward 

[Larz]

The only logic here is after he was cleared to play and practiced the cheaters felt he was a long way from making the team based on what they saw at practice 

Let's hope they blew it 

 

[Lith]

Good move. No real downside -- hopefully the kid is healthy and will be able to contribute at some point.

[The Crusher]

34 minutes ago, Larz said:

The only logic here is after he was cleared to play and practiced the cheaters felt he was a long way from making the team based on what they saw at practice 

Let's hope they blew it 

 

Or they found out he had a soul. 

[bealeb319]

Or they found out he had a soul. 

He did not want to succeed by holding on every play

Sent from my [device_name] using http://JetNation.com mobile app

[MaxAF]

Draft scouting report:

Strengths

Outstanding athleticism. Very good lateral quickness coming out of stance. Former high school hooper who still has basketball feet. Able to mirror pass rushers before and after engagement. Rarely beaten cleanly around edge by speed. Continues to slide feet and maintain engagement up and around pass arc. Works to keep his blocks centered in his power zone. Easily redirects back inside to chase an inside challenge. Has loose hips and quick feet providing recovery ability. Plays with his length. Fluid in space and can get to challenging angles. Keeps battling to anchor if he gets bumped early. Finds ways to get his man blocked.

Weaknesses

Carries stringy frame with upper body that looks like a defensive end. Lack of lower body strength exacerbated by elevated pad level. Needs to bend hips to dip pad level below defender's. In pass protection, opens outside hip up early rather than staying square in initial stages. Hands take outside path to target and punch can be ill-timed, allowing rusher first strike into his frame. Defaults to lunging at target when he panics. Lacks anticipation against twists. Will have to add more bulk and strength. Grabs and holds to counter bull-rush. Narrow base carries no power as base blocker in run game. Footwork and angles inconsistent on reach blocks.

[Long Island Leprechaun]

47 minutes ago, MaxAF said:

Draft scouting report:

Strengths

Outstanding athleticism. Very good lateral quickness coming out of stance. Former high school hooper who still has basketball feet. Able to mirror pass rushers before and after engagement. Rarely beaten cleanly around edge by speed. Continues to slide feet and maintain engagement up and around pass arc. Works to keep his blocks centered in his power zone. Easily redirects back inside to chase an inside challenge. Has loose hips and quick feet providing recovery ability. Plays with his length. Fluid in space and can get to challenging angles. Keeps battling to anchor if he gets bumped early. Finds ways to get his man blocked.

Weaknesses

Carries stringy frame with upper body that looks like a defensive end. Lack of lower body strength exacerbated by elevated pad level. Needs to bend hips to dip pad level below defender's. In pass protection, opens outside hip up early rather than staying square in initial stages. Hands take outside path to target and punch can be ill-timed, allowing rusher first strike into his frame. Defaults to lunging at target when he panics. Lacks anticipation against twists. Will have to add more bulk and strength. Grabs and holds to counter bull-rush. Narrow base carries no power as base blocker in run game. Footwork and angles inconsistent on reach blocks.

So you're saying he's basically the Darron Lee of offensive tackles. Cool!

[MaxAF]

2 minutes ago, Long Island Leprechaun said:

So you're saying he's basically the Darron Lee of offensive tackles. Cool!

Just his draft scouting report brother. He seems like he has a problem keeping his weight up. Blood clots and weight gain is not a good combination but has some positives.... and negatives. 

[Stonehands]

Supposedly, he lost a lot of weight related to his illness. I think he has a long way to go physically before he can be considered more than a project.

[Sperm Edwards]

Wouldn’t expect it, but hopefully it works out. Brick also had a lot of trouble keeping weight on when he was younger. I’m not sure if he was more than the 280-285 range (if he exceeded that at all) by the time his rookie year ended. Some guys need to learn to eat and bulk up more to fill out such a tall frame. It would seem to be among the easier “skills” to learn even if it’s uncomfortable for them while learning. 

The hope is the serious medical issues were completely secondary to trying to bulk up with anabolics, and that the clots would be otherwise absent if he gained weight in their absence. 

[#27TheDominator]

Coming out of Troy he was a project anyway, but the Pats moved up to take him in the 3rd last year.  Seems odd they'd dump him so fast.  The rotoworld blurbs had him as "part of the LT competition" to replace Solder as recently as April.  Strange that he couldn't even make it to camp.  

[flgreen]

14 minutes ago, Stonehands said:

Supposedly, he lost a lot of weight related to his illness. I think he has a long way to go physically before he can be considered more than a project.

Yep.  Will probably take several months to regain the weight.  Camp is not a good place to gain weight.  Odds are he'll wind up n PUP while he gains the weight.  D'Brick had a hard time keeping weight on first couple of years.

If he is done with the blood clots, big if, this could be an excellent pick up.

[JustInFudge]

Why not?  Makes sense.  I'd be bringing in any and every OL talent and OLB they can find and giving them some run in training camp.  Maybe you find diamond in the rough.

[flgreen]

13 minutes ago, JiF said:

Why not?  Makes sense.  I'd be bringing in any and every OL talent and OLB they can find and giving them some run in training camp.  Maybe you find diamond in the rough.

Garcia probably is a bit more then a long shot diamond in the rough.  He was drafted to replace Soder, then the blood clots started.  He showed up healthy, but at 260.   Pats drafted Wynn in the 1st round this year, and Garcia was no longer needed.  Assume the Pats don't want to spend the time with a guy who might not play this year.

If healthy, Garcia could be the Jets starting LT next year.

[Long Island Leprechaun]

45 minutes ago, MaxAF said:

Just his draft scouting report brother. He seems like he has a problem keeping his weight up. Blood clots and weight gain is not a good combination but has some positives.... and negatives. 

Should have put a smiley. I wish him the best. And we certainly need OL support.

[flgreen]

Jets claim ex-Patriots OT Antonio Garcia off waivers | What it means

Updated 7:59 AM; Posted May 14, 5:51 PM

The Jets have claimed Antonio Garcia. (AP Photo | Michael Conroy)

 

 

By Darryl Slater

dslater@njadvancemedia.com

NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

The Jets on Monday claimed former Patriots offensive tackle Antonio Garcia off waivers.

The Patriots had waived Garcia with a non-football injury, but he has been cleared to play. He had been participating in the Patriots' offseason workout program. 

Jets' top non-QB position battle?

New England drafted Garcia in Round 3 last year, out of Troy. His arrival with the Jets gives them some depth for their offensive line, which they need. 

The Jets' starting tackles likely will continue to be Kelvin Beachum on the left side and Brandon Shell on the right side. But Garcia could push Ben Ijalana and/or Brent Qvale for a second-string role during spring practices and training camp. 

Garcia, 24, has yet to play in an NFL game. In early August last year, he left a training camp practice early. He wouldn't practice or play with the Patriots again. In early September, they placed him on the non-football injury list, sidelining him for the remainder of the season. 

 

 

As it turned out, Garcia was dealing with blood clots in his lungs that caused him to lose about 40 pounds. He spent the offseason working his way back from that. 

Here was Garcia's NFL.com scouting report coming out of college

 

Consistently playing below 300 pounds, his lanky frame is the first thing that gets noticed. But his positive attributes show up on tape more than his weaknesses. Mass and functional strength are concerns and he still needs plenty of technical work, but a team could look to draft and stash him based on his starter's traits and ability.

Garcia was listed at 6-foot-6 and 302 pounds entering last year's draft. 

[Freemanm]

55 minutes ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Wouldn’t expect it, but hopefully it works out. Brick also had a lot of trouble keeping weight on when he was younger. I’m not sure if he was more than the 280-285 range (if he exceeded that at all) by the time his rookie year ended. Some guys need to learn to eat and bulk up more to fill out such a tall frame. It would seem to be among the easier “skills” to learn even if it’s uncomfortable for them while learning. 

The hope is the serious medical issues were completely secondary to trying to bulk up with anabolics, and that the clots would be otherwise absent if he gained weight in their absence. 

At this point anything would be an upgrade to our OLine

[C Mart]

36 minutes ago, flgreen said:

Garcia probably is a bit more then a long shot diamond in the rough.  He was drafted to replace Soder, then the blood clots started.  He showed up healthy, but at 260.   Pats drafted Wynn in the 1st round this year, and Garcia was no longer needed.  Assume the Pats don't want to spend the time with a guy who might not play this year.

If healthy, Garcia could be the Jets starting LT next year.

It’s reported he showed up at 290. 

 

He told the Boston Sports Journal in April that he was 290 pounds (13 pounds fewer than his official weight at the 2017 Scouting Combine).

[MaxAF]

33 minutes ago, Long Island Leprechaun said:

Should have put a smiley. I wish him the best. And we certainly need OL support.

Right now he’s a big “if” but maybe he’ll pan out. Worth a shot in training camp and preseason. He’s young and has potential and it’s not costing the Jets much to try him out. LT is critical. 

[#27TheDominator]

57 minutes ago, flgreen said:

If healthy, Garcia could be the Jets starting LT next year.

It's highly unlikely.  Teams don't cut guys that would start at LT making $750K.  If he was anything more than a huge long shot they would have kept him or traded him - the Pats make tons of trades.  I guess our biggest hope is that he had a feud with their staff and/or trouble with their medical people.  IIRC, he left a practice early and then it turned out he had the blood clots.  Maybe they didn't like his attitude on the comeback. 

[LIJetsFan]

Mac attack is at once again.  I've no problem with these long shots as long as they aren't taking up an unearned spot on the 53.  I wonder who has the better chance of taking a regular game NFL snap, Teddy or Tony? 

[MaxAF]

1 hour ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Wouldn’t expect it, but hopefully it works out. Brick also had a lot of trouble keeping weight on when he was younger. I’m not sure if he was more than the 280-285 range (if he exceeded that at all) by the time his rookie year ended. Some guys need to learn to eat and bulk up more to fill out such a tall frame. It would seem to be among the easier “skills” to learn even if it’s uncomfortable for them while learning. 

The hope is the serious medical issues were completely secondary to trying to bulk up with anabolics, and that the clots would be otherwise absent if he gained weight in their absence. 

I didn’t know it was confirmed that his blood clots were due to steroids. Unless you are just assuming that.

[Thai Jet]

GREAT pick up IMHO . Minimal downside and huge upside potential in an area of obvious need for the Jets. Good job by Macc

[Thai Jet]

24 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

It's highly unlikely.  Teams don't cut guys that would start at LT making $750K.  If he was anything more than a huge long shot they would have kept him or traded him - the Pats make tons of trades.  I guess our biggest hope is that he had a feud with their staff and/or trouble with their medical people.  IIRC, he left a practice early and then it turned out he had the blood clots.  Maybe they didn't like his attitude on the comeback. 

All valid points but as usual with the Pats we'll never know the whole story . Worth the risk on our part.

[Stonehands]

He looks a lot like Brick in his college film.  Like an NBA power forward playing left tackle.  Great feet and long arms, just not a lot of bulk, but Ferguson played under 300 lbs for most of his career once the season started.

[flgreen]

26 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

It's highly unlikely.  Teams don't cut guys that would start at LT making $750K.  If he was anything more than a huge long shot they would have kept him or traded him - the Pats make tons of trades.  I guess our biggest hope is that he had a feud with their staff and/or trouble with their medical people.  IIRC, he left a practice early and then it turned out he had the blood clots.  Maybe they didn't like his attitude on the comeback. 

 

26 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

 

The Pats drafted Wynn as LT in the first round.  They also traded for Trent Brown.  They are pretty fat at LT right now.  More then likely they waived him with the intention of putting him on the Non-football injury list for the 2nd year  until he gained all his weight back.  IMO they got to cute.  Jets claimed him before he got thru waivers.

[Sperm Edwards]

3 minutes ago, MaxAF said:

I didn’t know it was confirmed that his blood clots were due to steroids. Unless you are just assuming that.

I'm not assuming it nor is it confirmed. I'm saying I hope that the situation was that he used them to assist in bulking up, and that is what caused the clotting issues, since it's not a behavior/regimen he'd repeat, and therefore the lung clots wouldn't repeat either. 

It's not a pure shot in the dark guess, though. Things have causes, even if doctors don't always know the cause(s) before writing up a condition's etiology as idiopathic. He was too light to play in the NFL, and he'd never had these issues before (when playing against far inferior competition). Seems a bit coincidental that he'd suddenly - and temporarily - have this issue at a time he needed to bulk up for the Pats (without getting fat & sacrificing mobility). Medically the past clotting issues could absolutely be unrelated to taking steroids, but it seems at least something like these symptoms might have previously surfaced somewhere in his body at least once.

It would be great news for the Jets if it was secondary to steroid use. 

[Sperm Edwards]

1 hour ago, Freemanm said:

At this point anything would be an upgrade to our OLine

Well maybe not anything. We could go back to Wesley Johnson again and that would make it worse, lol. 

To your point, though, there isn't a returning OL position that couldn't do with an upgrade.

[MaxAF]

Well you know what happens when we ASS U ME. Just not a big fan of putting a label on a guy when we really don’t know. People get pulmonary emboli all the time for various reasons without Roids. Could be genetic or random.

[Sperm Edwards]

2 hours ago, MaxAF said:

Well you know what happens when we ASS U ME. Just not a big fan of putting a label on a guy when we really don’t know. People get pulmonary emboli all the time for various reasons without Roids. Could be genetic or random.

As an isolated incident that never surfaced before or since? That doesn't really happen all the time in someone with his presentation as a patient. 

I'm not assuming anything. I am suggesting in the absence of a definitive diagnosis (so much as I'm aware) it'd have to be one of the top likely differentials. Frankly it'd be ignorant (if not malpractice) to not think that's as likely as any other diagnosis in an otherwise healthy, 23 year-old professional athlete. Far more so than a yet-detected malignancy, MI, obesity, etc.

Garcia's not some fat old retiree watching TV from his recliner all day long. Plus though I'm sure they did blood tests to rule out, he doesn't fit the profile for genetic things like Factor V Leiden (which runs in my own family). If this was secondary to another genetic cause then he doesn't belong in the league, since both the cause and the treatment are potentially mortal dangers to an NFLer. Other than a freak one-time traumatic incident, which he's certainly subject to as a football player, increased testosterone is probably no lower than the #2 differential for Garcia, if he's to continue playing.

"Putting a label on the guy," lol. How's this for size: I HOPE AND PRAY HE WAS TAKING STEROIDS AND THIS IS THE ONLY REASON HE WAS AVAILABLE. If the etiology is otherwise, his future prospects of success (and health) in the NFL are far more pessimistic.

You are assuming one of the top 2 objectively-likely diagnoses are untrue, based on nothing other than a desire to believe in his having a perceived higher moral character.