Post by motm on Oct 5, 2016 16:35:13 GMT -6
No matter when he returns, this year likely Jay Cutler's last with Bears ( Full Title )
There are two distinct time frames when it comes to Jay Cutler's status with the Bears — the rest of this season and life beyond that. With apologies to Jimmy Johnson's halftime proclamation that Cutler may have taken his last snap with the Bears, the only way that is true is if Cutler's thumb injury is a lot worse than the team is saying.
Injury is the only thing that is going to keep Cutler out of the lineup. Brian Hoyer isn't good enough to do it. Eventually, Hoyer will be exposed as the guy run out of Houston and not good enough in Cleveland, a guy worthy of journeyman status having played for six NFL franchises, but much more a backup than a long-term solution.
The dilemma for the Bears is figuring out how to get Cutler to play like Hoyer did last week, a problem that has been solved exactly once in his career, last season when Adam Gase was the offensive coordinator. Gase is the top guy for the Dolphins these days, which is one reason people think Cutler might wind up there next season if he's not with the Jets or Cardinals or collecting backup money somewhere else.
Cutler will be 34 next season and the Bears no longer will be forced to keep him because of guaranteed money on his deal. It will cost a cool $2 million in dead salary-cap space to get rid of him, and, ironically, that is the exact amount Hoyer is making as Cutler's understudy.
Hoyer deserves to start against the Colts in Indianapolis after producing the first back-to-back 300-yard passing games the Bears have seen since Josh McCown pulled off the feat in 2013. That's the year Cutler was given the starting job back when he returned from injury, failed to keep the Bears on the winning track and nonetheless was awarded with the massive deal that has kept him with the Bears since.
Why should the Bears stay with Hoyer if they didn't with McCown? Bears coach John Fox has hesitated in proclaiming the job is Cutler's a couple of times since Hoyer took over. That's a bit suspicious. The fact he doesn't automatically want to go back to Cutler speaks to the idea of playing the hot hand, riding a wave of momentum and, of course, the limited margin for error his team enjoys.
The priority has to be eliminating mistakes and playing complementary football by running the ball and keeping the defense off the field. The Bears won time of possession in beating the Lions for their first victory of the season. That is their formula for success.
Cutler outplayed Hoyer in the offseason and preseason, but he has made a career out of costly turnovers. Cutler has a whopping 178 turnovers in 136 career starts. Hoyer has 39 turnovers in 46. Hoyer hasn't been able to sustain success, but he has tasted it in brief stints. That's ideal for a backup quarterback.
Cutler's failure to protect the ball is partially the reason he remains one of the most polarizing figures in Bears history. There isn't much middle ground when it comes to evaluating his play. For all the hand-wringing about whether he's a good teammate or passionate enough about his occupation, the underlying truth is that his Bears career has been a disappointment.
The team won a single playoff game with Cutler, who now is entering his decline phase with a rebuilding team.
Forget the idea he's some sort of black-hearted, dastardly super-villain or that he has created civic fatigue and football wariness. The real problem is that the guy missed his trajectory. He could have been an icon but fell impossibly short of expectations. Ultimately, Cutler will be judged and remembered for missing the mark with the Bears, regardless of how many systems, coordinators, coaches and general managers he outlived.
There aren't enough good quarterbacks to fill out the rosters of 32 NFL teams, so a guy with the natural ability of Cutler likely will have a future somewhere. In Chicago he simply will be haunted by a disappointing past even if he gets one more opportunity here before saying goodbye.
Link: www.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/ct-bears-jay-cutler-mulligan-spt-1005-20161004-column.html