Drivin’ Deez Nuts: The Cutler Comment Conundrum
By Deez
Sep 13, 2012; Green Bay, WI, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) reacts following a play during the third quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. The Packers defeated the Bears 23-10. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-US PRESSWIRE
In case you are new to Bear Goggles On, Drivin’ Deez Nuts is my weekly Bears rant. It’s sometimes irrational, sometimes irreverent, but always honest. Feel free to agree, disagree or tell me off in the comments. We’re all friends here. Enjoy.
I will be the first person to admit that Jay Cutler had a bad game. A terrible game. The Packers defense bested him, the Bears offensive line hung him out to dry, and Mike Tice needs to work on his play-calling. Despite that, I will say that Cutler was, at the absolute least, partially responsible for the horrendous game we saw last night. But the thing I cannot stand is all the people who say that Cutler “got what he deserved” for trash talking prior to the game. I don’t think people actually read or listened to what Cutler said. The comments he made were 100 percent correct.
When asked about the Packers possibly playing man-to-man coverage against the Bears big wide receivers, Cutler said:
"“Good luck…We invite press coverage. We invite man. If we get that type of game, our guys outside have to make some plays for us.”"
Had the Packers actually played man-to-man coverage last night and things turned out the way they did, then Cutler was, in fact, being too cocky and overconfident.
But the Packers didn’t play man-to-man coverage. They played a two-man deep zone with a safety helping out on the outside receivers for almost the entire night. What that is, is intelligent game planning and coaching. Packers head coach Mike McCarthy and defensive coordinator Dom Capers deserve credit. They knew that Cutler’s comments were accurate, so they weren’t even going to try it. The zone defense that the Packers played worked extremely well. Cutler never said anything about playing against a zone defense.
Some people in the media are falsely using Jay’s “cocky comments” to stir up fans and players.
After the game, ESPN reporter Rachel Nichols asked Packers DB Charles Woodson about the Cutler comments from earlier in the week, but she completely twisted his words. She said, and I quote:
"“We heard some talk out of the Bears this week that the Packers secondary wasn’t going to be able to work the coverages it wanted or get the interceptions it usually got because they had gotten these bigger receivers.”"
Poor grammar aside, who on the Bears said those things? Not Cutler.
All it tells me is that most people didn’t actually listen to what Cutler said. They heard what they wanted to hear, because it was Jay Cutler who said it. So, I’ll reiterate what I said earlier. Cutler played terrible, but if you want to rag on him, please get your facts straight.