The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback made his preseason debut last night against the Miami Dolphins, leading his team on one offensive drive that resulted in a punt in the third quarter. It was Simms' first game since Sept. 24, 2006, when he sustained a ruptured spleen during a regular-season game against the Carolina Panthers.

"It was great to be back in there, take a hit and just drop back and throw a few," Simms said. "It really felt good. It wasn't the most productive night, but it was great just to be back out there."

Officially, Simms was 0-for-1 passing on the night, his one official attempt dropped by tight end Keith Heinrich. He was also flagged for an illegal forward pass when he scrambled beyond the line of scrimmage before flipping the ball to running back Ernest Graham for a gain that would have given the Buccaneers a first down.

Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden said Simms would get more playing time in Thursday's final preseason game against Houston. On Saturday, he merely wanted to get Simms one series.

"He just wanted to get me out there and, in his words, smell the huddle again," Simms said. "I smelled it and it smelled just like I remember."

He may be promised more playing time, but the promise of Simms' future in the NFL is an unknown.

The fifth-year pro is fourth on Tampa Bay's depth chart behind starter Jeff Garcia and backups Luke McCown and Bruce Gradkowski. Saturday's performance likely did nothing to change that.

However, Simms said he didn't feel any butterflies upon his return to the field, nor did he feel any pressure to perform with the final roster cuts coming Sept. 1.

"I'm going to just continue to work and try to get better and I'm not going to worry about those things that I can't control," he said. "I just want to get better and I'm going to do my best and see what happens."

There will be time for what-ifs later. What if, for example, Simms hadn't gotten hurt last season in what was supposed to be his first as a full-time starter?

Would Garcia even be in Tampa? Would people even know who Gradkowski is?

What matters now to Simms is simply trying to get himself back to 100 percent - so he can start smelling the huddle on a regular basis again.

"Physically, I'm fine and I can take a hit," he said. "I can run around and do all that stuff. As far as throwing the ball, I'm nowhere near 100 percent yet. But it's getting better week to week.