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Where do You Stand on Jay Cutler?

By Mike "Boomer" Burzawa

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It all started innocently enough in my mind.  I was putting together my Bear Dawn post the other day and took a couple of sideswipes at Jay Cutler.

"Get to know Jay Cutler‘s latest victim quarterback coach Dowell Loggains:"

And…

"Jay Cutler hosted some Bears pass catchers at Vanderbilt for some workouts and bonding. Conspicuously absent was Alshon Jeffery, who was working out with Brandon Marshall at one of his local FitSpeeds."

I’ve highlighted the offending terms that raised the ire of a few Jay Cutler supporters.  I didn’t know there were any of them left?  I figured the last of the die-hard Cutler apologists had headed for Nashville, expecting Cutler to land there in a blockbuster offseason trade than never came to fruition.  And so goes the saga of one of the most polarizing and divisive players in Chicago Bears history.

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As we enter Jay Cutler’s 7th season in Chicago, I feel like we’ve seen what we’re going to get from Jay.  Big arm?  Sure.  Throwing touchdown passes into seemingly impossible windows in traffic?  Yup.  Maddening red zone interceptions?  Check.  Facepalm fumbles?  You betcha.  The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat all wrapped into one?  Absolutely.

I was a Cutler apologist for the first few seasons Cutler was in town.  The Bears failings weren’t his fault, it’s because the offensive line was terrible, the weapons weren’t there, the defense messed up, Lovie Smith doesn’t know offense, Ron Turner/Mike Martz/Mike Tice are bad or [insert your favorite excuse here].  I defended Jay (and will defend him to this day) on the whole NFC Championship game toughness question and fallout.  But after a couple more seasons of mediocrity and missed playoffs, I finally gave up.  I conceded that Jay Cutler was not going to lead the Bears to a championship.

"I’ve sat back the last 3+ years supporting Jay and made excuses for him.  I’ve stood by like a star-struck cheerleader, awed by the rocket arm and tremendous talent while looking past the body language and facial expression and leadership questions.  Those things don’t matter, WINS DO.  This is a results-oriented business."

I went on to study how Cutler performed against winning teams.

That was 146 weeks ago after Week 2 of the 2012 season.  What have the Bears done since?  They’ve missed the playoffs in ’12 – ’14, they’ve fired two head coaches and two GM’s but still managed to sign Cutler to a $126 million contract.  Huh?  No wonder they fired Phil Emery!

Is it all Cutler’s fault?  HELL NO!  The failings are organizational, from the top all the way down.  Football is a TEAM sport – you win and lose as a team.  But are the Bears going to win because of Cutler?  I don’t think so.  We’ve seen what we’re going to see from Cutler.  I don’t expect a light bulb to magically come on and have everything fall into place for Cutler.  As much as I like Kevin White and Alshon Jeffery and John Fox and Adam Gase, I don’t think Cutler will suddenly stop throwing interceptions and take care of the football.  I don’t expect things to click and for Cutler to rally those around him to be better.  There is no “next level” for Cutler.

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So while Jay Cutler is the most talented and probably the best or second best quarterback in team history, in my opinion, he’s not going to lead them to a Super Bowl.  But maybe I’m wrong.  Convince me that the Bears can win with Jay Cutler.  Where are all the #CuttyDoesIt peeps out there?  Or are you a Cutler hater?  Let’s hear where you stand on Jay Cutler.  Vote in the poll and back up your position in the Comments section.  (Please play nice and keep it clean!  No need for name calling or foul language to make your points.  I’d like a nice, civilized discussion/debate!)

*Packers fans are not allowed to vote for Team Cutler!

BEAR DOWN!!!

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