CrackerDog

Honestly I'm tired of the McCown/Cutler war and I'm going to refuse to fight it, at least tonight as I've got to run. But to answer your question, I'd say the swap was just that, the two of them got approx the same number of throws to them as a group with Josh favoring Alshon and Cutler favoring Marshall. I don't think you should make anything more of it than that to be honest. There could be dozens of factors influencing that including practice time experience one has with the other, coverages and personnel the opposition had on the field, etc. We know Cutler favors Marshall because of a significant amount of experience with him and the trust they've built up. That CERTAINLY isn't a bad thing. Imagine Marshall next year on this team if they're unfair to Cutler in his eyes and his "boy" is gone. As to Josh/Cut, the team will make that decision and as long as it isn't blatantly based on bullshit, I'll support it as long as the money potentially left over from not signing Cutler is immediately plowed into free agents to rebuild the D. I'm pretty confident we'll see Cutler out there in orange & blue next season but there could be a lot of behind the scenes stuff that Trestman and Emery know that we all don't that will factor into the decision. I do assume it's still an open matter and that it could go either way and that money and talent will be balanced when the final decision is made, either way.

By the way, I've been meaning to say this ever since the thread was opened but haven't. It isn't all on Jay. I disagree with the supposed premise of this thread based on the title alone. And it isn't because of the original post because Mad wasn't saying "It's all on Jay" as to whether the team succeeds or fails, he was saying it's all on Jay in terms of pressure because if the Bears succeed despite the obvious problems on this team, it'll benefit Jay directly. And a team failure could impact Jay negatively whether it's fair or not. But the point I'm trying to make here is that there are folks who are looking at these two games and will be jumping up and down pissing their pants if the Bears don't win. They'll blame Jay even if he and the offense puts up 38 points but the D gives up 41. Watch for it. Fortunately, our coaches and front office will know better. If Jay really is to blame, I'll be happy to join you in shitting all over him. But if he isn't, or better yet, if he's the reason for the team winning, you can bet I'll be on his side. I hope to do a little grave dancing here on some of you Benedict Arnold types. You know who you are.

No, it isn't. That single stat (and according to you it's only .33) reflects exactly that Cutler is fairly close to "Joe Cool" when it comes to what he's most accused of being bad at, brainfart picks. I realize you'll never admit to losing an argument so I'll just leave it at that. I never said Cutler was a good as Montana. You like to argue with people based on things they never said. That's generally considered not cool. All of this is horseshit. I assume this year he hasn't "had to" as you blather. I'm sorry, hitting your RB with 10 passes in a game, helping to create a new young WR superstar in Jeffery this year, hitting both Bennetts when that's what the defense was giving him... Are you off your meds? Does Cutler call his plays? Does he decide the personnel groupings? Is it him who keeps the FB in for additional blocking on the rare occassion the FB is actually on the field on a pass play? Shit man, even your newfound "wanna humpy hump" stud Josh McCown topped out at 2 passes to the FB this year, that's a full reception more than Cutler! JESUS MAN, YOU'RE RIGHT, THAT'S 100% MORE!!!

LOL! There's that reading comprehension thing again with you. Read my post again. Or should I say READ IT. I said Cutler throws .5 more picks per game than Joe so I'm actually rounding up to his detriment according to your calcs. I know he throws more picks than Joe, the point being that given all the coordinators he had to go through, no offensive line, shitty receivers, and this year a D that can't help but put pressure on him to score every single series... THAT AIN'T BAD by comparison. So in comparing Cutler to an all time great, a guy everyone mentions as their example of cool under pressure, given the circumstances, he isn't playing wildly out of control like you and others pretend. LOL! So is Jay spreading the ball around or not? I realize those guys have had some good games under Josh (your hero) but they've done pretty well with Jay out there too. I mean, this week alone, Alshon for 72 yards and a TD. E. Bennett for a TD this week. In fact, three receivers over 70 (including M Bennett) and three passing TD's to different receivers against a decent defense, not the patsies Josh played against. Add Alshon for 218 yards and a TD against New Orleans. Over 100 against Detroit with another TD. Both also good D's. We don't have a fullback on the field 90% of the time (almost never on passing downs) but that's a nice straw man. I LOVE the pass to a fullback but when he isn't on the field, you can't expect Cutler to hit him, can you? Our TE is catching plenty of balls. Etc. I would like to see him check down to Forte more than he did this week but 38 points is OK with me. And Forte's best receiving game of the season (10 catches) was under Cutler, not McCown. In short, one of the biggest criticisms of Cutler is being blown out of proportion by the talk radio types and internet football experts out there. There's certainly room for improvement but he's already improving and has shown me enough to not want to jettison him just when things could finally be getting interesting.

Ha!

Good post. Particularly the "Cracker's right" part. I think we agree more than not on this. I'm a little more optimistic about Cutler being able to adapt to the system because I think he has the tools and it's just a matter of time. But as you say, Trestman is in those meetings, knows exactly what Jay should of done on each play and how Cutler is responding to constructive criticism. Nobody on this board can be sure one way or the other because what we see is the public Jay, who I think we all can agree is a bit of a tool. Maybe less so now than in the past, but still sort of a tool.

I found the terms used a little insulting. To suggest Jay hasn't bought into the system when there's no way of knowing that but to ask him. He's bought into it while still continuing to believe in his abilities. You can't expect that to change. To say Jay needs to show some moxy, the dude is all MOXY. Listen, Joe Montana threw low to mid teen picks a season and never had to overcome this shitty a D. Cutler averages about .5 of a pick more than that while being in his fourth system in four years. Sorry, that's not outrageously bad. Jay will see his payday.

Turns everything I've ever believed about an outdoor team in a bad weather location on it's head. I never thought an O could produce this well under those circumstances.

I understand what you're saying but to be honest, most of this is insulting BS. Yes, Jay has some proving to do but only because the backup did a fine job. Which makes many question whether anyone could do what the two Bears QB's have accomplished this year. Putting up huge points to overcome a D that blows ass isn't easy no matter what the system. Jay has proven himself. He's on a full season pace to throw for over 4,000 yards and it's my opinion that we'd be even better than our 8-6 record if jay had stayed perfectly healthy. Sure, he can improve! But let's not get arrogant about the results the Bears have seen this year despite some huge challenges. In short, I think Jay just needs to do exactly what he's already done to get that big contract. He's shown plenty of "moxy". He's a talented QB and will commmand huge money in the open market. The Bears will have to compete for his services with a market deal. All this crap about Jay needing to take a cut, give us a deal... All bullshit. Like you, I'll be satisfied with whatever Emery and Trestman decide but unlike you, I don't think it'll have a lot to do with Jay growing up and buying into the system. He's clearly still learning the system and while learning he's been putting up big numbers and scoring lots of offensive points. That'll only get better as he gains more experience with Trestman.

Me too. But I'm not holding my breath. Cutler haters aren't swayed by results or logic.

So much fun to see the dirtiest team in the league get shot down like this. Hopefully the Bears can close the deal these next two weeks.

LOL!

Funny, this dovetails with a comment I made this weekend, I think. I told someone (who didn't really give a shit) that it was almost like Jay was a rookie and the coaches were throwing him out there to learn. Now, obviously Jay is far from a rookie but as to this particular offense and the discipline Trestman desires, this is all new to Jay. And I couldn't agree with you more on your comments. Trestman is "all knowing" when it comes to each and every play. So if they put out the big bucks for Jay this winter, it's because Trestman and Emery agree Jay can be as good, or better, than Rodgers. And with the WR/TE/RB talent (not to mention the young OL) on the Bears, that's not a stretch at all.

Really? I don't find it difficult to be optimistic at all. And if it turns out I'm wrong and they lose both games and end up 8-8, it won't kill me given all that's happened this year. In the meantime, I'm living a happier life not feeling like I have to get down on the team I love when they've grown so much this season. Does it make me some sort of chump that I choose to be positive? By the way, in the post game interviews, Marshall took the blame for the first pick. Said he didn't jockey his way in front of the defender the way they practiced. I already know your answer to this. I realize Cutler's a risk taker but more often than not those chances pay off. We lost a few games with Josh out there, everyone seems to forget. Maybe with someone out there "winging it" we wouldn't have had to worry about OT against the ferkin' Vikings! Regardless of our shitty D. And don't take this as me blaming Josh for the loss, he played well. I just wonder if things would've been different with Jay out there. The Clowns are better than the Queens. So, everyone, for your own good, chill out a little bit, enjoy the holidays, your family and put this football season in perspective. If we get into the playoffs it's the cherry on top of the Sundae. Cutler isn't a "Useless Asshole", he's our QB and more than likely will be for the foreseeable future. If you hate that idea, maybe you should go root for the Cowboys or something. As for me, I'm looking at the miraculous offense we have on the field and smiling because I know that with an even moderately good D, we're destined for great things.

So what? First off, I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to the dude calling Cutler a "Useless Asshole" for throwing a pick after being out for four weeks. When he threw that pick, truth be told, I yelled something like "GOD DAMN IT CUTLER, GET YOUR HEAD OUT OF YOUR ASS!" But what I didn't do was wet my pants in public about it. People on this board, and this tool in particular, need to get a friggen grip. This team's D is abysmal and we're still hopeful of making the playoffs. Our coach has quite possibly lost us a game or two this season by his decisions alone. If someone called either of those folks useless I'd defend them too. It's all part of a process and to expect perfection in season one under Trestman is idiotic. I'll tell you this, if we get lucky and win our last two games while Detroit loses tonight or in the next two weeks, there won't be a playoff team that wants to face these Bears in the first round of the playoffs. And I hope like hell I can cheer them on with Cutler making a fool of his detractors all the way. Tell me one post of Terra's that's been even moderately insightful. This one was meant to inflame and frankly that's what this dude does. He's a troll here as far as I'm concerned. I'm direct and sometimes I'm an asshole too, but at least I have something better to say than "Useless Asshole" about our starting QB. So if you want to take his side, so be it. I'm just going to continue to call 'em like I see 'em.

Anyone who thinks there's a QB out there who makes no mistakes is a fool and knows literally nothing about this game. The measure of a great player is how they respond. Today Jay showed us all what that means. I hope it continues into the playoffs.

That's rich.

Amen brother.

Ha, yeah, he sucks. Typical overreactive bullshit from TerraTor. All he did was lead us to victory on the road against an excellent defense. Sure he forced that one to Marshall in the end zone but unless you don't care to give the guy a chance to prove himself (half this board) you have to forgive rust after a god damn month off. And his boy is Marshall so suck it. The other pick sailed on him in the wind. Period. Some here would obviously rather root for their own petty interests than the good of the team.

Probably true given that the Bears have spent the last decade overcoming the "Cheap" label. I'm sure they don't want Jay walking away mad thinking he got shafted and telling everyone the Bears did this based on money alone. With that said, if it's a football decision alone and Trestman really believes in Josh, it wouldn't surprise me to see them let Jay walk.

We should be smarter and judge Jay based on his career as a Bear. And that's what makes it difficult because by any measure he's been a disappointment. He's had outstanding games and horrible games. He's been expected to be a top 5 QB and has delivered average results, year after year. Now, there are plenty of reasons for that in Jay's defense, but it's understandable to question him THIS YEAR based on the fact that a literal nobody in the QB world has, quite simply put, outperformed him. I'm a "Jay guy" in these parts and even I'm left scratching my head as to what I've seen unfold out there this season. But you're 100% right as to the fact that Jay should be given a little bit of a pass for some rust this week. Then again, ol' Josh didn't show any when he was forced to step in this year under even worse circumstances. Hell dude, I don't even know what to say at this point. Josh has shut me up.

Amen to that. But let's not forget, there are early Round 1 busts just like there are middle and end of Round 1 busts every season. I think it may make sense to target an early pick when there's a "can't miss" player projected at a position like QB or RB and you're looking for a 10 year guy at that position to plug in for the next decade. But just saying lose to better your position in the draft is an oversimplification and often has just as many negative impacts as positive. Playing second string guys could get your first stringers injured, for example. It could also hurt team morale and/or send the wrong message to free agents you're intending to chase in the following off season. Winning is contagious, etc. There are obviously two sides to this argument, just like whether a team should "rest" their starters once they have their playoff positioning settled. I'm not a fan of that either.

Could be bullshit, I have no idea. But this is the first indication that the Bears might be thinking about going the cheap route and using the cap dollars on positions other than QB. We've debated that extensively elsewhere and I'm officially on the fence. http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Bears-...-offseason.html Take it for what it's worth...

Besides having the luxury on D, his offense typically sucked. If you have a 7 point lead, the ball and there's 3 minutes left in the game, in his defense, it might make sense for you to run it 3 times and punt rather than having your O give the game away. Dude, I know what you're saying and I prefer that stomp your opponent philosophy myself. I'm just saying, if you put yourself in Lovie's shoes it's pretty easy to understand why he did what he did, much of the time.

You made a lot of good points but this last one... As to age, you may have a point but to say he doesn't have the pedigree, dude, he ain't anywhere near the same ballpark. His play this year is an absolute anomaly for his career whereas the others do (or have done) this type of thing regularly (with the exception of Palmer who's better days may have come and gone.) I love what he's done but it still feels wrong to me to say he can be "the guy" going into next season.