New York Jets Breaking News: Jets Sign Veteran David Garrard

The New York Jets have officially signed former Jacksonville Jaguars and Miami Dolphins quarterback, David Garrard. Garrard has not played in two years after being released unexpectedly by Jacksonville in 2011.

Specific terms of the deal have not been released, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini.

A couple of weeks ago, the Jets hinted at an upcoming deal with Garrard, saying that the two sides were very close to an agreement. Garrard confirmed the deal on Twitter saying, "Just made it official!! I am a New York Jet!!!!"

GM John Idzik has emphasized that he planned on bringing in competition for Mark Sanchez, who is guaranteed $8.25 million next season.

Garrard was a solid quarterback in Jacksonville, throwing for at least 2,500 yards and 15 touchdowns in each season from 2007-2010.

Another important aspect to Garrard's game is that he is not very turnover prone.

Garrard has only thrown 54 interceptions in 69 games since 2006, Sanchez has thrown 69 interceptions in 62 games, which is a much higher interception per game ratio.

The Jets now have Sanchez, Garrard, Greg McElroy, Matt Simms and Tim Tebow on the roster.

The Jets are expected to release Tebow if they are unable to find a team to trade him to. Despite having plenty of quarterbacks on the depth chart, Idzik might not be finished trying to find an answer at the position. The Jets may draft a quarterback or sign a free agent such as Brady Quinn.

Garrard was expected to earn the starting position in Miami last season before injuring his knee. He underwent arthroscopic surgery and was released before the regular season.

If Garrard can stay healthy, he could be a decent short-term option at quarterback in Marty Mornhinweg's West Coast system. He can move around in the pocket and is fairly accurate, which are both important qualities for a quarterback playing in a West Coast offense.

Garrard has a career completion percentage of 61.6.

Unfortunately for the Jets, the quarterback market is very thin this offseason. The Jets did not have enough cap space to bring in an Alex Smith or Matt Flynn through a trade, so Garrard was the best available option.

He isn't a bad short-term plan but isn't someone the Jets should try to build around.