Jay Cutler was brutal last night. There is no other way to say it, no other way to spin it and no other way to try and massage his performance into something other than what we all saw.
In a game that seemed to set professional football back in terms of entertainment and a watchable televised event, Cutler threw five picks in a 10-6 loss amidst penalties, poor execution and overall bad football.
But, is this what football has come to in Chicago under Cutler? He now leads the league with 17 interceptions. Yes, the same guy who has the new contract extension, the same guy who was welcomed into this city as a franchise quarterback and the same guy who the Bears mortgaged the 2010 draft for.
I honestly can’t explain as to why he played so poorly last night. He forced passes, threw the ball into coverage, and at times, it looked as if Cutler was trying to win the game—and the season—by himself, which just doesn’t work at this level. And I don’t get it, because Cutler looks like a franchise QB with the arm, the attitude and the play-making ability.
And Bears fans are stunned, shocked, and today, in deep mourning,
I received plenty of text messages last night from family, friends, ex-teammates and Bears fans. That is what happens when you fail to produce in a primetime game. You are the only action in town and everyone is watching—and Cutler was the main attraction.
I tried, as best I could, to calm them down. Sure, the first red zone pick was a harsh reminder of how risky Cutler really is every time he drops back to pass, but as the INTs started to pile up, the text messages just kept coming.
But, just as bad as Cutler and the Bears' offense was, this game was still within reach. He started to drive the Bears down the field in the final minute, hitting slant route after slant route—as the San Fran defenders dropped seven into coverage and played off the Chicago receivers.
Cutler was actually going to do it again. He had brought the Bears back for comeback wins against the Steelers and the Seahawks, and Bears Nation was prepping for another. They would be able to turn a blind eye to the four previous picks and relish in the fact that their franchise QB would get them the Thursday night win.
Because, as much as Bears fans refuse to say it, this is why GM Jerry Angelo made the blockbuster deal in the first place. Cutler was the guy who could make the throws that Kyle Orton could not. He is the guy who was given the extension this season because he could bring you back and make that one play—the game-winning play—with the postseason hopes on the line.
And then he threw another interception—his fifth of the night—in the Niners’ end zone. A collective sigh by Chicago could be heard throughout this entire city.
The last text message I received after the game said it all from my sister-in-law: “Why did we get rid of Grossman for this guy?”
Last night, I couldn’t answer that.
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Maybe Orton, the guy who always took the safe route, wasn't a bad thing? I am shocked that this guy leads the league in picks.
More than Delhomme? Awful. I feel for the city of Chicago today.
Thank god we still have the Blackhawks. I am done watching this trash.
How do those INTs taste Bears fans? This is the same crap we saw in Denver with this guy.... and just watch, when he talks to the media, it won't be his fault.
Enjoy!
Thanks for Orton, BTW!
You're right about that game. Almost unwatchable. Take two teams that have lost 7 of their last 8 combined games, and I guess that is what you have to expect, but this is supposed to be the NFL. SF has an offense that looks crude compared to the average middle school JV team. Alex Smith has mastered the shovel pass. That's about it. They got 5 turnovers and managed 10 points. And they won the game. Unreal.
Don't worry Bears fans. For you guys it is INTs, up north with Rodgers, it is sacks.
Neither of us can get it done this year.
It's his balance, clearly.
Having 2 chins, instead of the more usual 1, seems to throw him off balance.
Until a helmet manufacturer starts making a helmet specifically for him with a double-chin strap it's going to continue to happen.
The problem with Cutler is that he is not humble enough. The guy has amazing talent but overrates himself. The one game he was humble and focused he beat the defending champs.
Matt,
Hate to revise history here, but is it possible that Cutler's situation in Denver really played to his strengths and hid his weaknesses?
When I think about Cutler in 2008, I see the best offensive line in the NFL, a 100 catch monolith in Brandon Marshall, Eddie Royal's amazing athleticism (which Cutler's arm really maximized, to be fair), and a really clean pocket (only 1 sack per 50 pass attempts). That type of situation is sure to help any QB, but I'd imagine it helps the guy with the huge arm and questionable decision making especially. All things considered, is a middle of the pack QB rating (#16) and a not so hot TD-INT ratio (25/18) ratio that impressive?
Chicago's gonna be alright... I just wonder if we need to start trimming expectations for Cutler going forward.
QBs with tools, skills, and the desire to be special make it in the NFL. QBs with tools, skills, and a sense of entitlement FAIL. See Ryan Leaf...
I was against Cutler from the start. His cry baby attitude in Denver, his petulant pouting, the diva attitude when trying to get traded, all were red flags. I was swayed by his success, but even in Denver he had that Brett Favre thing of the untimely mistake.
And without a truly big, elite target like Marshall I wondered if he would be successful (I've never been sold on the Bears receivers, who should be called, with apologies to the Three Amigos in Denver, A Wing and a Prayer). Now we know.
Denver, meanwhile, is doing pretty well. I wonder is Cutler has second thoughts, what with Denver's defense, ground game, and Marshall making things happen. I bet he misses those things. Do the Broncos miss Cutler? Not so much.
Keep loosing Bears..... Our #1 pick keeps getting closer to overall #1 with every game you lose. I love watching this. lol.
He has the arm and play-making ability of a franchise QB, but we have yet to see the attitude of a franchise QB you refer to Matt...actually the opposite given the Denver saga. I think a piece of humble pie will do Cutler some good. His attitude and decision making is the worst part of his game. He's always presented himself as an elite QB without ever accomplishing anything. Hopefully, nights like last night help him in the long run to develop the mental aspects of the game to match his physical skills and becomie a real franchise QB. He needs to mature a lot and needs to realize that he can't win the game on every play by himself. He brought a me > team attitude to the Bears and that leadership (or lack thereof) is showing in the play of all their players.
Still, I don't think it can all be put on his shoulders. The coaching and play calling has been terrible for the Bears and they share much the blame. He's also working behind just an absolutely terrible offensive line and he's throwing to the likes of Devin Hester, Earl Bennet, and a fifth round rookie Knox. You can talk up the WR's all you want, but Hester should be your #2 and Knox should be your slot guy...in a year or two. Given the talent that surrounded him in Denver both at WR and on the O-line, a regression was to be expect. Not to completely excuse his play from last night, because if he gives the Bears a D- performance they win that game.
The thing is, the Bears got exactly who they traded for. Exactly. It wasn't Jay Cutler that completely re-invinted himself when it became more fashionable to rip on Josh MacDaniels. That's on the national media and Bears fans. He wows you with his talent-- when he's not bored to death by an 'inferior' opponent like last night-- and then his brain shrinks to an acorn inside the 20's...provided he brings himself to the game at all.
And then there was that ridiculous extension....no way that could have sent the wrong message...
As a Denver Bronco fan, all I can say is "We told you so".
" Cutler threw five picks in a 10-6 loss " . Matt lets go back to your one highlighted line . Why is Jay Cutler put in a position to throw 5 picks ? He is literally being asked to carry that offense . The Bears can't run the ball . That is the problem . The play calling is iffy IMO as well . The Bears were in 3rd & long over & over . To much is being asked of Jay Cutler .
Welcome to your future Chicago fans. In Colorado we all jumped for joy when the big cry baby left and we'll be even happier when we get to use your draft picks. Your future will be even worse in the coming years now that you mortgages your payroll into a quaterback who thinks he's the only guy on the team. Wah, wah, wah.
First, the O-line sucks, did with Chandler, Grossman, Griese, Ortin. I don't care who the qb is, no protection, no good passes. You can mention the number of times Cutler got sacked to try to prove that wrong, but look at how little time he had in the pocket.
Secondly, outside of Knox, he doesn't have that great of receivers. No one can really stretch out and make a catch the way his receivers in Denver could. The better the receivers, the better the QB looks.
Thirdly, offensive coordinator and coaching staff. Lovie has always looked at only the Defense and never the offense (even during the superbowl run a few years ago) He simply either can not figure out the problems on the offensive side of the ball or just doesn't care, either way, a head coach he should not be. As far as Ron Turner, that guy couldn't scheme his way out of a paper bag with no one defending the opening. Here's an idea, run a little bit, devise bootlegs off the running plays, shake things up a little bit. Current Bears offensive game plan is so easy to figure out. Forte run up the middle, Hester quick pass to the flat, occasional bomb to Knox, 3 yard pass to Olsen in the middle of the field. Very seldom does Clark get the ball, despite having decent hands. It's so predictable what they will do, no wonder they suck.
So, yes, Cutler has some issues, but the rest of the team does not make it easier on him.
He has the arm and play-making ability of a franchise QB, but we have yet to see the attitude of a franchise QB you refer to Matt...actually the opposite given the Denver saga. I think a piece of humble pie will do Cutler some good. His attitude and decision making is the worst part of his game. He's always presented himself as an elite QB without ever accomplishing anything. Hopefully, nights like last night help him in the long run to develop the mental aspects of the game to match his physical skills and becomie a real franchise QB. He needs to mature a lot and needs to realize that he can't win the game on every play by himself. He brought a me > team attitude to the Bears and that leadership (or lack thereof) is showing in the play of all their players.
Still, I don't think it can all be put on his shoulders. The coaching and play calling has been terrible for the Bears and they share much the blame. He's also working behind just an absolutely terrible offensive line and he's throwing to the likes of Devin Hester, Earl Bennet, and a fifth round rookie Knox. You can talk up the WR's all you want, but Hester should be your #2 and Knox should be your slot guy...in a year or two. Given the talent that surrounded him in Denver both at WR and on the O-line, a regression was to be expect. Not to completely excuse his play from last night, because if he gives the Bears a D- performance they win that game.
Why do people keep calling Cutler a playmaker? When has he ever made a positive play for his team in a game that matters? I would rather have Orton. At least you know what youre going to get with him.
He's a loser. The year before he took over the Broncos, they hosted the AFC Championship game. The year after he left, they started 6-0 and seem likely to be in the playoffs. In between, with Cutler running the show, he was sub .500
And if that's not enough, the Bears were 9-7 and missed the playoffs by one game last year. Cutler comes in and they're, SURPRISE, under .500 and he leads the league in INTS.
The media have been falling all over Cutler for a couple years now, even though he's done nothing on the field but lose. And show quite the lack of character as he forced his way out of Denver. Now the Bears are stuck with him.
Between the Bears and Packers' woes, the NFC quarterback situation is crystal clear and as a Viking fan that finally has the quarterback I just have one thing to say - "There will never be a better quarterback than Brett, effin, Favre". Thanks Ted Thompson and Mike McCarthy for ruining any chance the Packers had while you two are in charge.
Cutler is NOT a leader or a team player. He is convinced that he can and must win games by himself. Exceptional talent, unexceptional leadership skills.
Seperately, concerning the night games and his particular poor performance in them, why don't any of the talking heads mention his diabetes? Or is it taboo? And Chicago....what about a diabetic that parties and drinks like Cutler does, is that type of self-destructive behaviour indicative of a franchise player?
Four quarterbacks with 5 pick games in less than a month (Sanchez, Warner, Stafford, Cutler): is this a record?
I don't know why Orton always gets dragged into these discussions. He was probably at Bears HQ, minding his business, trying to make the most out of his talent through hard work, when he got informed he was moving to Denver. He also got sent along with two first rounders-- one of which is starting to look like a Top 10 pick, and one of which was Robert Ayers, who gets better every week. The enduring idea that the Bears 'won' this trade is ridiculous. In the worst case scenario, Denver got a nice transitional QB and a couple more building blocks for the future while Chicago got the same exact Jay Cutler that went 17-20 in Denver. In other words, nice clean comparisons between Orton and Cutler simply don't exists. They are bogus in context of the event as a whole.
Yeah, Orton and the Denver Broncos are flawed. That's not much of a news flash outside of Chicago. The Denver Broncos still not being an elite team doesn't vindicate Jay Cutler and the ridiculous revisionist hysteria surrounding him. Orton not morphing into an elite QB doesn't make Jay Cutler better. Remember, it was Denver who was supposed to be a cellar dweller and Chicago that was headed to the promised land.... Funny how things work out.
So this is now what the 26th bad QB decision the Bears have made in the past 16 years ... and you are suprised why?
Cutler's demand to be traded at Denver and his early on antics at the Bears demonstrated he was a head case.
The Packers and Bears moves on QB's should remind everyone that once you have a successful & proven QB, build around him. Accept their strengths, and attempt to minimize their deficiencies. The Bears can't possibly design an offensive strategy without knowing what they have in a QB. The Packers, got rid of Favre and committed to Rodgers, and then forgot the offensive line.
Desperation and ego are bad management traits for GM's & Head Coaches.
Nov 13, 2009
10:22 AM
I am wondering the same things Matt. The guy has the tools, but what is this crap? Can he throw the ball any harder to the wrong team?
I feel like vomiting. Have a good day.