Jaguars tab Garrard starting QB over Leftwich

Aug 31, 2007 - 10:15 PM JACKSONVILLE (Ticker) - In a surprising move, David Garrard on Friday was named the Jacksonville Jaguars starting quarterback.

Previous starter Byron Leftwich is expected to be released or traded prior to Saturday's 6 p.m. deadline for cutting the roster to 53 players.

Leftwich is in the final year of his contract with the Jaguars. He had struggled during preseason and did not play in the Jaguars' final exhibition game Thursday night against the Washington Redskins.

During the preseason, Garrard completed 36-of-47 passes for 456 yards, one touchdown, no interceptions and a 113.4 passer rating.

"We've gone through the offseason, training camp and the preseason with Byron as our starter, but after thorough ongoing evaluation of the entire body of work, we have made the decision that David gives us the best chance to win," Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio said. "We're naming David as our starting quarterback.

"This is a strong team with a solid roster and we feel that David's performance and continuing improvement warrants this decision to name him the starter. Byron has been a very important part of this team and this is a significant move to make, but it is a move we feel gives us the best chance of winning."

Garrard replaced Leftwich at quarterback in the seventh game of last season and had the Jaguars on the brink of clinching a playoff berth before the team lost its final three games of the season.

In 18 regular-season starts, Garrard has a 10-8 record. He started 15 games the last two seasons and holds a 9-6 record. In 2005, he led the Jaguars to five wins in the last six games to cap a 12-4 record and the team's first playoff berth since 1999.

The Jaguars made Leftwich the seventh pick of the 2003 draft. He was 24-20 as a starter, completing 789-of-1,344 passes for 9,042 yards, 51 touchdowns and 36 interceptions for a passer rating of 80.5. Leftwich had been the team's official starting quarterback since the fourth game of his rookie season.