Cutler expectations

[Ed Hochuli 3:16]

I'm going to make it easy on Captain Cutler by providing a series of instructions that should make the transition seamless.

 

1. On second/third/fourth and short situations, Ron Turner is going to ask you to hand the football to your fullback. You should not do this. Ever.

 

2. Sometimes the receivers don't catch the ball, even when you throw it well. Especially Rashied Davis. I'm not sure what the other receivers will do because, other than Devin Hester, none of them have ever caught a pass in the league. Don't get down. We'll get you better ones in time.

 

3. When you see that same Mr. Hester running a go route downfield, throw the football. If he doesn't catch it, he'll draw a flag from a terrified corner/safety who has never seen a player run that fast. (On a similar note, Turner's going to want you to throw this dopey Hester screen all the time. You should not do this. Ever.)

 

4. Throw the ball to Greg Olsen all the time. He's a 90-catch talent coming off a 54-catch season and there's neither a linebacker nor a safety in the league that can cover him man-to-man. (Turner may require you throw an endzone fade to Mr. Olsen. You should not do this. Ever.)

 

5. This is going to be a strange experience for both of us, Jay. We're not used to having an elite-level quarterback and you're not used to playing outside the shadow of former quarterbacking glory. You're going to want to impress us. That's fine. But the most important thing to Chicago Bears fans is winning ballgames. 4,000 yards would be wonderful. Pro Bowls, perfecting ratings, all that stuff. Wonderful. But if you win ballgames, specifically the one at the end of the season, you become immortal in one of America's greatest cities. You stop paying for things. You open steak restaurants. If you win the one at the end of the season, you become Chicago Bears football.

dabearsblog.com

 

Pretty funny.

The last point gave me the chills.

[madlithuanian]

Great post Brianbear! I enjoyed reading that!

 

I can't say I'd disagree! Maybe just add a little...

 

1. Agreed! Audible out! You're allowed to QB sneak, give it to Forte, or hit a TE!

 

2. Ha! Keep in mind, you have great TE's and a RB who can catch!

 

3. Agreed! Kill the damn WR screen! Only RB screen is premittable...

 

4. Agreed! See #1 and #2!

 

5. Totally! So true! Just give us the effort and smart play, and the winning will come naturally.

 

dabearsblog.com

 

Pretty funny.

The last point gave me the chills.

[lemonej]

Both you guys are right and right now he is the toast of the town and he will put pressure on Turner to adapt his hard to figure play calling to his talent.

[DABEARSDABOMB]

Entertaining article, I like it.

[madlithuanian]

I hope so too!

 

I also think Cutler has the kind of leadership quality similar to McMahon that he won't fear changing a play every now and then...and disagreeing w/ a call. At least I get that impression. It usually stems from confidence. Something our last few QB did not have in abundance.

 

Both you guys are right and right now he is the toast of the town and he will put pressure on Turner to adapt his hard to figure play calling to his talent.

[lemonej]

Your right Mad L being the QB for this franchise that requires a big sack and the last time we had one with that we won the super bowl.

[Ed Hochuli 3:16]

FWIW, my white authentic Cutler came today. Looks awesome.

[Pixote]

I think we should not expect the guy to throw for 4000+ yards and 30 TDs.

 

Last year Denver had no running game, they were bringing in players off the street at the end of the season due to injuries.

 

We definately have a star RB and an excellent ground game that will only get better this year.

 

They had no defense and were playing from behind in "shootouts" just about every game.

 

I expect to see the return of a dominating Chicago Defense.

 

He threw over 600 passes last year. I would be shocked if he came anywhere close to that this year.

 

He will still contribute greatly to our return to the SB in 2010!!!!!!!

[jason]

I'll add one more:

 

When you get the play, line up, and see a defense full of smiling faces...they know the play. Audible out. You may also notice that you can hear faint yells from across the nation of Bears' fans who can also see the play-call telegraphed from a mile away. In this case, once again, audible out. From time to time ol' Ron Turner gets a wee bit predictable, and it will be on you to make a play. Screen to Forte, slant to Bennett, deep in-route to Hester, seam route to Olsen...whatever you want. Just make sure you audible.

[BearSox]

I got no problem with the endzone fade to Olsen. It can be an effective play if the matchup is there.

 

And the quick out screen to Hester ain't bad. Only thing is you gotta teach Hester how to run it, and use it in the correct situations.

[azbearsfan]

Here is one more we should add:

 

Beware the fickle Bears fan. Although they claim to have tons of knowledge in the areas of offensive and defensive coordination, GM skills, and player evaluation skills, most do not have patience and do not know how to handle a "gunslinger" style QB. Therefore if you throw for 300 yards and 4 scores every week, everything will be fine. But as soon as you throw 2 or 3 picks in a game, you will hear the words "bust" and calls for Mr Angelo's head for trading for you. You could even lead us to a Super Bowl appearance, but as soon as you fumble or toss a pick six you will start hearing boos. Ignore this. Most of these guys live in 1985 and the most experience they have had with football has been running their fantasy teams. Picture the "Superfans" skit from SNL x 1000.

 

If you have a rough patch, the true fans will understand. The true fans will not expect you to come in and magically transform Davis and Bennett into Rice and Taylor. It will be a work in progress and and fun to watch. Sometimes, with the gunslingers, you live by throw and die by the throw. Just play hard and if you hear the boos from time to time, call these fools out on it. And enjoy Matt Forte.....we all did last year.

[madlithuanian]

Funny!

 

Although I think you may be off in your description. I live in LA, LA fans are fickle. Chicago fans, while some can be unreasonable and harsh, aren't fickle. They want to see their team win and not flail around. Some may want to throw the baby out with the bathwater as you perfectly explain, but all LOVE their Bears team. I was hard pressed to see the Laker flags flying during the Sedale Threat years here. That's fickle. Wanting your QB to be perfect and thinking you know everything is just unreasonable. I believe virtally all Bears fans are "true"...just some are more reasonable in expectations than others.

 

May I suggest a some better terms:

 

1. Harsh?

2. Unreasonable?

 

 

 

Here is one more we should add:

 

Beware the fickle Bears fan. Although they claim to have tons of knowledge in the areas of offensive and defensive coordination, GM skills, and player evaluation skills, most do not have patience and do not know how to handle a "gunslinger" style QB. Therefore if you throw for 300 yards and 4 scores every week, everything will be fine. But as soon as you throw 2 or 3 picks in a game, you will hear the words "bust" and calls for Mr Angelo's head for trading for you. You could even lead us to a Super Bowl appearance, but as soon as you fumble or toss a pick six you will start hearing boos. Ignore this. Most of these guys live in 1985 and the most experience they have had with football has been running their fantasy teams. Picture the "Superfans" skit from SNL x 1000.

 

If you have a rough patch, the true fans will understand. The true fans will not expect you to come in and magically transform Davis and Bennett into Rice and Taylor. It will be a work in progress and and fun to watch. Sometimes, with the gunslingers, you live by throw and die by the throw. Just play hard and if you hear the boos from time to time, call these fools out on it. And enjoy Matt Forte.....we all did last year.

[adam]

Here is a question, if we had made the playoffs in 2008, do we have Jay Cutler as our starting QB right now? I'd say no.

[madlithuanian]

Agreed. Glad it worked out that way in the long run.

 

Here is a question, if we had made the playoffs in 2008, do we have Jay Cutler as our starting QB right now? I'd say no.

[defiantgiant]

Here is a question, if we had made the playoffs in 2008, do we have Jay Cutler as our starting QB right now? I'd say no.

 

Yeah, I'm with you. Kyle was a leader and was popular with the team. The Bears had three big fourth-quarter losses thanks to the defense. If the Bears had pulled off a win against Atlanta, Tampa Bay, or Carolina, we could have made the postseason; if we'd made the postseason, I think we'd still be starting Kyle.

 

The Cutler trade seems it was spurred by missing the playoffs twice in a row. It seems like Angelo was trying to take the onus off himself and put it on the coaching staff. With Cutler on board, Angelo can credibly say that he fielded the best talent he could, and that he did everything in his power to win, now the coaches need to do the rest. I really hope Cutler's good, because I liked Orton a lot, and but for a couple of key defensive collapses, I think he would still be Chicago's starter.

[Mongo3451]

Yeah, I'm with you. Kyle was a leader and was popular with the team. The Bears had three big fourth-quarter losses thanks to the defense. If the Bears had pulled off a win against Atlanta, Tampa Bay, or Carolina, we could have made the postseason; if we'd made the postseason, I think we'd still be starting Kyle.

 

The Cutler trade seems it was spurred by missing the playoffs twice in a row. It seems like Angelo was trying to take the onus off himself and put it on the coaching staff. With Cutler on board, Angelo can credibly say that he fielded the best talent he could, and that he did everything in his power to win, now the coaches need to do the rest. I really hope Cutler's good, because I liked Orton a lot, and but for a couple of key defensive collapses, I think he would still be Chicago's starter.

 

I think Angelo pulls the trigger regardless. For one, if you have an opportunity to land a bonafide franchise QB you make an attempt. I think we saw enough of Orton's limitations to know he's nothing more than a game manager. Secondly, if we would have made the playoffs, Orton's value could be perceivably higher and possibly would have lessened Denver's demands, allowing us to get Cutler a little cheaper. Lastly, with most of our core signed and the team in great cap shape, that made us a potential mover and shaker this off season. We arguably have done more to improve our team this off season than any other franchise as a result. I wish I knew where we are capwise, because we may have some surprises to come. If not, I'd expect to see Cutler extended and also know we'd be in position to be in great cap shape next season as well.

[balta1701-A]

I think Angelo pulls the trigger regardless. For one, if you have an opportunity to land a bonafide franchise QB you make an attempt. I think we saw enough of Orton's limitations to know he's nothing more than a game manager. Secondly, if we would have made the playoffs, Orton's value could be perceivably higher and possibly would have lessened Denver's demands, allowing us to get Cutler a little cheaper. Lastly, with most of our core signed and the team in great cap shape, that made us a potential mover and shaker this off season. We arguably have done more to improve our team this off season than any other franchise as a result. I wish I knew where we are capwise, because we may have some surprises to come. If not, I'd expect to see Cutler extended and also know we'd be in position to be in great cap shape next season as well.

The other thing to keep in mind with Orton was...he's an unrestricted FA at the end of this season. Cutler isn't. So simply making that deal ensures the Bears won't have to overpay for Orton just to have a warm body at the QB slot. The Broncos are risking that.

[lemonej]

Yeah, I'm with you. Kyle was a leader and was popular with the team. The Bears had three big fourth-quarter losses thanks to the defense. If the Bears had pulled off a win against Atlanta, Tampa Bay, or Carolina, we could have made the postseason; if we'd made the postseason, I think we'd still be starting Kyle.

 

The Cutler trade seems it was spurred by missing the playoffs twice in a row. It seems like Angelo was trying to take the onus off himself and put it on the coaching staff. With Cutler on board, Angelo can credibly say that he fielded the best talent he could, and that he did everything in his power to win, now the coaches need to do the rest. I really hope Cutler's good, because I liked Orton a lot, and but for a couple of key defensive collapses, I think he would still be Chicago's starter.

The Cutler trade was spurred more by Denver missing the playoffs than the Bears. Denver losing games down the stretch allowed the Chargers to reach the playoffs subsequently getting Shanahan fired and McDanials hired. The Bears took adavantage of an opportunity that presented itself. With Orton on a one year deal it could have been possible that the Bears may have pursued a replacement or a young QB to groom this year.