Coach Jon Gruden has tried to avoid getting into specifics when asked about the possibility of quarterback Jeff Garcia being traded.

But Gruden made his most emphatic denial today when asked about the potential for moving Garcia, something that has been suggested and reported in a number of places in recent days.

Asked if the Bucs or anyone in the organization has discussed Garcia with other teams, Gruden said, "I have not. I have not talked to anybody about Jeff. There are a lot of reports out there and if someone ever came to me that had issued a report, I would be happy to address it. But there's a lot of reports out there that are erroneous and incorrect."

So, basically, the reports are not true?

"Not to my knowledge," he said.

You can make of that whatever you want. It wasn't that long ago Gruden was issuing strong denials about the team's interest in Brett Favre, and we all know that wasn't exactly, well, true.

Not calling Jon a liar. Just saying that, oftentimes, where there's smoke, there's fire (i.e. Favre). And right now, it's pretty smokey around here.