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Out of bounds; Cutler should have thought this through
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Jay Cutler is now saying that he didn’t want it to get this far. He is saying that he loves Denver and his teammates. Maybe he should have thought about that before he made a request March 16 to be traded, after the Denver Broncos openly pursued New England signal caller Matt Cassel.
When Cutler made the claim that he was surprised to be traded so fast last Wednesday and that it wasn’t his wish, he probably didn’t know that he was going to be with the Bears. However, he probably realized that he was going to be taken out of a situation that many quarterbacks would love to be in.
In Denver, he had arguably one of the best receiving corps of the league, including Brandon Marshall, Eddie Royal and Brandon Stokley. The Broncos just added former Patriot Jabar Gaffney to the mix, giving their QB another target to throw to.
In Denver, Cutler had former Boise State LT Ryan Clady to protect his blind side. Clady was one of only three rookies to start every one of his team’s games at the tackle position. He was named Diet Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Week in week 14, becoming the first offensive lineman to win the award since its inception in 2004. Clady was part of an offensive line that allowed only 11 sacks and enabled Cutler to throw for 4,526 yards and 26 touchdowns in 2008.
Granted, the Broncos blew a promising start to the 2008 season and missed the playoffs after losing their final three games. However, they showed great potential on offense.
Granted, the Broncos fired veteran head coach Mike Shanahan. However, they added promising first-year head coach Josh McDaniels, who comes from a winning environment in New England. There he served as position coach and most recently as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks’ coach for the last eight years.
Granted, that same coach tried to bring in the quarterback he worked with in New England, Matt Cassel. However, NFL teams constantly shop around for players looking to improve at various positions. NFL teams also try to bring players aboard who they previously worked with.
Now, Cutler is headed to the Windy City. He will have a stronger defense than in Denver, and the Bears just got some help at LT with the signing of 13-year veteran Orlando Pace. But look at who Cutler will be throwing the ball to. The Bears’ best-known receiver is a return specialist. While Devin Hester has shown some flashes at wideout, he is far from being a Marshall or Royal. The other receivers listed on the Bears’ roster are Rashied Davis, Earl Bennett, John Broussard, Brandon Rideau and Devin Aromashodu. Who would you rather throw to?
On top of that, the Bears traded their first-round picks in 2009 and 2010, making it less likely to pick up an impact receiver in one of those drafts. The likes of Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin or Percy Harvin will be gone by the time the Bears get to choose. With the package they sent to Denver, including and additional third-round pick in this year’s draft, the Bears also stripped themselves of draft picks they could have used to trade up to get one of the aforementioned.
It is out of the question that Cutler will be an upgrade over Kyle Orton for the Bears. However, will the Bears be an upgrade for Cutler? I don’t think so and maybe Cutler should have thought about this possibility before demanding a trade in March.
ANDREAS KREUTZER
Arbiter Journalist