ESPN.com reports that Jay Cutler will miss the rest of the 2011 regular season due to a broken thumb on his throwing hand. While it's certainly not a good thing for the Bears to lose their starting quarterback, they shouldn't be worried. Why?
Reason One: The Bears have been winning games on running and defense
During the Bears current five game winning streak, Cutler has been really good. Not only do his throws like sharper and he's absolutely not making dumb throws like he has been doing the past two years, but he's only gotten sacked five times and he has a 7:3 TD/INT ratio. But with that being said, this team is a classic Chicago Bears team. They have been winning with an effective Cover-2 (this year), have been creating turn overs, been having Matt Forte run 99 yards and then have Marion Barber punch it in from the one-yard line. Since the passing debacle that was the Bears/Saints game in Week 2, Mike Martz has been running the ball first and then have Cutler pass second. As far as I know, guys like Forte, Barber, Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, and Julius Peppers are still healthy.
Reason Two: Caleb Hanie is not half bad
While we really have not seen a whole lot from Hanie, I like what I have seen. I've been to multiple training camps to watch Hanie play and I was really impressed when he replaced Cutler (and Todd Collins grumble grumble) during the 2010 NFC Championship game and from what little I have seen from him. Plus, see Point One. This team is not designed around throwing the ball and I think with an emphasis on Forte in the offense, Hanie will be fine.
Reason Three: The Bears have an easy schedule.
Here's the rest of the games that the Bears have- at Oakland, vs. Kansas City, at Denver, versus Seattle, at Green Bay, and at Minnesota. The only game on that schedule that scares me is at Green Bay. The Bears are in the driver's seat to earn the fifth seed in the playoffs and even without Cutler, I'm confident they can do that.
OK, now here are some reasons I might be worried as a Bears fan.
- Cutler has an amazing deep ball. Defenses always have to respect the deep ball which in turn spreads opposing defenses thin. With Hanie now starting defenses can move up like what my fellow school chums did whenever I came to the plate during kickball games and thus the Bears will have a tougher time running the ball.
- The Bears Cover-2 is designed to play with a lead. The Bears have actually been scoring a lot of points of late (the Bears have been averaging 32.2 points during their five game winning streak) and with Hanie in instead of Cutler, the Bears defense will not only be on the field more but will have a tougher time holding down opposing offenses.
That being said, I'm confident the Bears can rally to a one and done play off birth. GO BEARS!!!
As a bonus: here's GOI's famous awesome Caleb Hanie video:
Showing posts with label Jay Cutler. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jay Cutler. Show all posts
Final Words On The Cutler Situation
I had a grade 2 sprain of my shoulder just 7 months ago playing basketball. Not only was it extremely painful, to the point where I couldnt even lay down in bed without scorching pain, but it felt like the entire left side of my body was disconnected. Putting on a shirt was impossible, let alone trying to outrun the greatest athletes on earth.
Cutler got hurt getting tackled by 2 Packers in the endzone on an incompletion with 4:06 left in the 1st half- I looked it up on my Tivo. He played 2 more series that half, got a pain killer over halftime, and tried playing one more series to start the 2nd half. To sprain the MCL, a person needs to get hit on the lateral side of the knee to create the tension medially. Most athletes experience the so called "unhappy triad", a sprain to the ACL, MCL, and medial meniscus. Luckily, Cutler only hurt the MCL and will not require surgery and a lengthy rehab process.
Just because Cutler doesnt care about you, the media, it doesnt mean he doesn't care about his job or the fans. We can't all be as fake as Tim fucking Tebow.
Quick Thoughts On Cutler's "Performance" In The NFC Championship Game
I know Cutler is receiving a lot of flack for not finishing the Championship Game. While I'm sure everyone can agree he was injured, I'm also sure that he was still good enough to complete the game. Many former players and fans alike are criticizing that Cutler was still healthy enough to play in the game and that his lack of heart, not his injury, was the reason for his absence.
A fundamental assumption that everyone seems to be missing is that: Could Cutler have been effective if he completed the game? I think that answer to that question is "No" and that Caleb Hanie looked really good. I would prefer an effective quarterback (in Hanie) than a pretty banged up quarterback (in Cutler). Reports have come out that Cutler got injured at the end of the first quarter and if you saw how poor Cutler played during the second quarter, you would understand how the injury affected number 6.
Cutler has been sacked a league leading 52 sacks- 12 more than #2 on the list (Flacco)- and he got it in 14.5 games (unlike a full 16 for Flacco). He played behind the worst offensive line in football this year (literally 32 out of 32 according to Football Outsiders) and has- at best- a below average to average receiving corps. Cutler needs to scramble and run to be effective and if an injury prevents him from doing that (which it looked like it did) then he (rightfully) needed to remove himself from the game. Also, the guy never once called out his offensive line (which he had every right to) and I find it hard to believe that all those hits and sacks didn't take a toll on his body.
Truly, at the end of the day, the only thing fans and teams care about is wins. Sure Brad Johnson and Trent Dilfer were mediocre quarterbacks who won Superbowls, but do you think Bucs and Ravens fans really care all that much? Do you think they would have sacrificed those quarterbacks over say a Peyton Manning if those franchises hadn't won rings? Absolutely not. All I cared about is if the Bears won. Helping Jay's legacy would be nice, but at the end of the day- I would take a 30.0 passer rating from him in a win or I would take a win led by Caleb Hanie.
Either way, I'm sick and tired of national media outlets using Jay Cutler has a punching bag or a scapegoat. Unless someone in that locker room speaks out about Cutler or you just happened to be filming a documentary of Cutler right when that happened- stop talking shit about his personal life and speculating what's in his mind.
___________________
UPDATE: The Chicago Sun-Times just reported Cutler has a torn MCL. 1) There goes my initial assumption that Cutler was healthy enough to finish the game 2) For all of you fans you criticized Cutler while Tweeting on your couch, you try walking to the fridge to get a beer on a torn MCL. For all the players that called Cutler out, shut your fucking face.
A fundamental assumption that everyone seems to be missing is that: Could Cutler have been effective if he completed the game? I think that answer to that question is "No" and that Caleb Hanie looked really good. I would prefer an effective quarterback (in Hanie) than a pretty banged up quarterback (in Cutler). Reports have come out that Cutler got injured at the end of the first quarter and if you saw how poor Cutler played during the second quarter, you would understand how the injury affected number 6.
Cutler has been sacked a league leading 52 sacks- 12 more than #2 on the list (Flacco)- and he got it in 14.5 games (unlike a full 16 for Flacco). He played behind the worst offensive line in football this year (literally 32 out of 32 according to Football Outsiders) and has- at best- a below average to average receiving corps. Cutler needs to scramble and run to be effective and if an injury prevents him from doing that (which it looked like it did) then he (rightfully) needed to remove himself from the game. Also, the guy never once called out his offensive line (which he had every right to) and I find it hard to believe that all those hits and sacks didn't take a toll on his body.
Truly, at the end of the day, the only thing fans and teams care about is wins. Sure Brad Johnson and Trent Dilfer were mediocre quarterbacks who won Superbowls, but do you think Bucs and Ravens fans really care all that much? Do you think they would have sacrificed those quarterbacks over say a Peyton Manning if those franchises hadn't won rings? Absolutely not. All I cared about is if the Bears won. Helping Jay's legacy would be nice, but at the end of the day- I would take a 30.0 passer rating from him in a win or I would take a win led by Caleb Hanie.
Either way, I'm sick and tired of national media outlets using Jay Cutler has a punching bag or a scapegoat. Unless someone in that locker room speaks out about Cutler or you just happened to be filming a documentary of Cutler right when that happened- stop talking shit about his personal life and speculating what's in his mind.
___________________
UPDATE: The Chicago Sun-Times just reported Cutler has a torn MCL. 1) There goes my initial assumption that Cutler was healthy enough to finish the game 2) For all of you fans you criticized Cutler while Tweeting on your couch, you try walking to the fridge to get a beer on a torn MCL. For all the players that called Cutler out, shut your fucking face.
Caleb Hanie Still Thinks Jay Cutler Sucks
Some comments from my YouTube page today
HAHAHA, I'm not even a Bears fan but this qb gets my respect. This guy came out to win. He should have earned a spot as the starter with that type of performance. Cutler is a heartless joke. I've been saying it for years, and this 3rd stringer proved it.
Hanie should be a starter
Props to Hanie for stepping up in the NFC championship game. It was a pretty close comeback
Fucking Cutler is so bad
Well judging by the way Cutler wussed out on his team against the packers for the NFC championship imma say Hanie was right, he is better, Big Props to Hanie gained a lot of my respect
LOL, I'm a But I got to say that some of the bear fans are in denial. Cutler was playing like **** even before the so called knee injury. And if his knee was that bad with torn knee ligaments, than how was he able to stand and walk perfectly fine? He walked over to rodgers pretty damn quickly to give him a hug. If his knees really had torn ligaments than he wouldn't even be standing if it was that bad, much less walking fine!
stud!
My Quick Thoughts On The Chicago Bears
- Jay Cutler looked awesome. The interception was his fault (he under threw the receiver, which I believe was Aromashodu) and one of his two TDs was all Matt Forte (if you saw the game you know which one), but Cutler still looked good. He looked very mobile, made great decisions (something he didn't do last year), took the sack/hit instead of trying to make a play, and overall looked awesome. But we need to take this game in stride, it was against then Lions. Also, Cutler needs to do what no other QB in Bears history has seemed to do- create scoring drives. Putting up stats is all fine dandy but at the end of the day I need him to throw TDs and not play awful when he smells the red zone.
- Matt Forte was like my abusive boyfriend. Every time he hit me (i.e fumbled, made a bad play) he does something to make me fall back in love with him (i.e. 151 receiving yards and 2 TDs)
- Speaking of Forte, in his 2 years in Chicago he has NEVER been able to get that one tough yard on the goal line to get a TD. In fact, last year Forte was third among backs getting carries inside the opponents 10 (36) and 5th among back getting carries inside the opponent's five yard line (19). Yet Forte only ended up with FOUR rushing TDs. Last year, Aaron Rodgers had more rushing TDs than Forte. At this point I blame Lovie Smith for sticking with Forte
- SIDENOTE: I LOVE the fact that Lovie went for it on 4th and goal. It sucks that the Bears didn't get away with any points, but I love the cahones.
- Chester Taylor looked awesome as well. I wanted him to get more touches but with Forte being so awesome, I'm conflicted
- This offensive line is pure garbage. I'm extremely concerned Cutler doesn't play more than 8 games because he's taking his lumps.
- I'm done with Greg Olson. I can handle fumbles (sort of) when you play like DeSean Jackson. But you can't play poorly AND cough up the ball.
- Cutler seems to be looking for D.A. a lot and I'm thinking my prediction of Knox being a better fantasy WR than D.A. won't come true. But as a Bears fan I'm glad. D.A. could be a legit #1 wide out and he needs the targets like a legit number one.
- This rushing defense looked amazing. I know Best had 2 rushing TDs but only 20 yards on 14 carries. And the D looked awesome.
- I might have been a bit premature on calling Brian Urlacher done. Again, it's the Lions, but Urlacher looked really good along with this linebacking corps.
- I don't know what to think about this passing D. Shaun Hill looked AWFUL, but he's also Shaun Hill. Stafford didn't look THAT much better but he's also Matthew Stafford. Calvin Johnson could have and should have (and did on his TD) had his way with Chicago's defensive backs because he's so much taller, faster, and stronger than all of them. This worries me when guys like Greg Jennings, Brandon Marshall, Randy Moss and Miles Austin come to town. I still have a little faith in Zack Bowman. But very very little.
Scouting From Bears Training Camp
As promised, a report from my experiences down in Bumblefuck, er, Bourbonnais Illinois- home of the Chicago Bears training camp. Two years ago, I went with friend-of-the-site-Keith (he's been on a few podcasts with us). I ended up severely spraining my ankle before walking through the entrance. And to add insult to injury (almost literally) we ended up leaving early because of severe thunderstorm warnings. After the two hour drive home, I turned on the news to realize that right after I had left, training camp had resumed again.
Last year, I went with a few more friends, including fellow Game Of Inches blog authors Cubsfan4evr and The 'Bright' One. A much better experience. We got out first look and discovered diamond-in-the-rough Devin Aromashodu and got video of back up quarterback Caleb Hanie stating that Jay Cutler sucks and that he should start. A much better experience to say the least.
So now it's becoming a GOI tradition- go down to Bourbannais to scout the team. This year, we had to take two cars and Cubsfan, myself, and six of our friends (TBO is currently in the Dominican Republic scouting for Cubs middle relievers) went down to see the team. Here are a few notes, anecdotes, interviews, pictures, and experiences from the trip:
- We saw a lot of the offense practicing (as they were right in front us). One of the big things that jumped out to us was how many plays were directed towards Johnny Knox. The first team wide outs consisted of Knox, Devin Aromashodu (D.A.), and Rashied Davis. No Hester on either first or second string teams (more on Hester later). It seemed obvious that the vast majority of the plays were designed and many of the targets went towards Knox, not D.A.
- Both D.A. and Knox looked really bad all day and missed a lot of easy passes. Very disappointing considering we at Game Of Inches are huge Aromashodu fans.
- Cubsfan and myself have a Board Bet for fantasy football: Johnny Knox v. Devin Aromashodu. I took Knox just because I think the Bears like him more and I believe he'll get the most opportunities and targets for the team. Friend of the blog Fantasy Football Spin and others have talked extensively about the wide receiver options for fantasy in Chicago. Current ADP had D.A. leading all Bears receivers with 96.74, followed by Knox with 133.63, and Hester with 134.39- and all within four WR slots of each other (with crappy Braylon Edwards being the fourth).
- Training camp has just reinforced my belief that Knox will get more targets than D.A. and thus holds more fantasy value in 2010. Listen, I love D.A. I think he's a legitimate #1 receiver much like Steve Smith was for the Giants last year. He's the biggest wide receiver Chicago has at 6-2, he's fast, and has the best hands on the team. But unfortunately the Bears are a bad organization and have fallen in love with the "#1" fifth round draft pick of 2009. I believe D.A. is the better talent but Knox is the better fantasy play and neither will be on any one of my fantasy teams.
Let's take a break and look at some actual players:
55: Lance Briggs; 54: Brian Urlacher; 95: Anthony Adams; 52: Kevin Malast
91: Tommie Harris; 94: Matt Mayberry; 27: Major Wright; 54: Brian Urlacher
6: Jay Culer
20: Craig Steltz; 26: Tim Jennings; 96: Barry Turner; 80: Earl Bennett
Now on to some Devin Hester talk:
- His absence from both special teams (where the only name of note returning kicks was Knox) and both the first and second string teams was very odd. When Hester was singing autographs for fans, one fan asked him if he was injured- which is the most logical reason for why Hester was not on the field. However, Hester said he was perfectly healthy. So I'm curious why 23 was not on the field practicing (but was suited up).
- My next guess is that Hester is really really really stupid and new offensive coordinator Mike Martz's system is really complicated and Hester still doesn't understand it. I remember Hester lining up next to Muhsin Muhammad and Moose having to yell at Devin to move over because he was standing at the wrong place on the line of scrimmage. But this is just a guess.
- I asked Hester: Over/Under 1200 yards for him in 2010? He didn't answer but the fans all said "over" and he agreed with them. I then asked him how many TD's he would get in the upcoming season and Hester said 10-11.
- I have an autograph football that many Bears have signed over the past couple of years that I literally held to Hester's face, twice, when he was signing autographs for fans. Not once did Hester sign it. He did however sign an autograph for my friend Keith. That dumb mo fo (Hester, not Keith). But hey, I'm not bitter.
- Some rookie wide out was carrying Hester's pads into the locker room. He probably won't make the team. Take a lesson Dez Bryant!
Anecdote and fun story time!
- One great thing I love about Bears training camp is that everyone is extremely nice and friendly (I'm sure this is the same at all training camps, but I only have experience with the Chicago team). We're all essentially in the same fraternity- the love of the Chicago Bears- so it makes sense. When I fell and hurt my ankle, the fans in line could not have been more nicer to me to help me up. When a firefighter at the camp looked at my ankle but said they couldn't give me an Advil because of "legal" reasons, one fan sitting next to me give me some of his spare Tylenol.
- When sitting in the stands this year, my friends and I were surrounded by many fans who we had the pleasure of talking to. Directly to the right of us (and directly behind Cubsfan) was an elderly gentleman by himself happily eating the Wendy's he had brought into the stadium. He mentioned at least four times how a back up tight end, who probably won't make the team, was wearing Mike Ditka's former number: 89. He also mentioned at least ten times that that used to be Willie Gault's former number. Willie Gault played for the great Bears team in the mid to late eighties and played for the Greatest Team Ever: the '85 Bears. I know this, not because I actually saw Willie Gault play (my parents weren't even married yet by January of 1986) but because this guy had to mentioned it 10 times and acted like my friends and I watched him play. I just turned 23 years old. Now admittedly I look older for my age (especially with the three day old 5 o'clock shadow I was rocking) and some of my friends do too. So say this guy thought we were 26-28 years old. That means we were about 5 when Willie Gault played. NO WE DON'T KNOW WHO WILLIE GAULT IS OR EVEN REMEMBER WHAT NUMBER HE WORE.
- There was a young couple sitting directly in front of us with young girls (their daughters). The husband was a probably a bigger Bears fan than all of us. He recalled the day after his second daughter was born watching a game in the hospital and told his wife that he would take care of his child and be there for her, but would not miss a Bears game. He was smart and brought his daughters along so he could get many of the "elite" players like Urlacher, Cutler, and Pepper's autograph (because players will gladly sign autographs for little kid. But screw the 16-49 year old males who actually buy tickets, follow the sport and team, and purchase merchandise. Again, I'm not bitter.)
- We all agreed that it was extremely stupid of the Bears to drop DE Alex Brown and to not pay him. He would have looked great opposite Julius Peppers, not that expensive, and this is an uncapped year anyway.
Some more TMZ-style interviews I conducted:
- I asked K Robbie Gould if he would ever become the all time NFL leader in field goal percentage. (He's currently 4th all time). Robbie laughed and said he'd have to wait about eight, nine more years to see how everything shakes out and hopes to last that long. He was cool and signed an autograph for me.
- On a fantasy football related note, even though Gould is an extremely accurate and good kicker, he was only the 13th best fantasy kicker in 2009 and the 16th best in 2008. Further proof that there is no amount of research you can do (nor should do) to draft kickers.
- I asked CB Charles "Peanut" Tillman which would he prefer: getting an INT in the game or making sure the receiver he covered didn't get a touch? (The reason I asked him this is because I am personally under the belief that INT are overrated and a cornerback like Oakland's Nnamdi Asomugha or New York's Darrell Revis are awesome because they cover their receiver like white on rice, despite the lack of interceptions) However, Peanut was taken aback by my question and just responded "whatever the defense calls for". I then asked him: Over/Under 7 interceptions for the year? He said "over". He was also cool and signed an autograph for me.
- I asked rookie and soon-to-be-cut safety Quentin Scott which was the better 'Quentin' him or Carlos [White Sox OF Carlos Quentin]. The fans and him laughed and he responded "Oh, Carlos for sure. I played baseball, I know how good he is" I could have gotten an autograph but I already have LB Nick Roach and like nine other guys' autographs that I don't care about so I didn't want to make in 10.
Some final notes about the players I "scouted":
- Although it was an extremely limited amount of times and small sample size, former first round pick offensive lineman Chris Williams looked really good blocking Julius Peppers.
- However, the rest of the offensive line looked awful during drills of offensive vs. defensive lines.
- Northern Illinois alum and 3rd rounder Garrett Wolfe took all the second string snaps in practice. In case anyone was thinking about handcuffing Forte or Taylor with Khalil Bell, don't.
- Rashied Davis, who took Hester's place in practice, looked like the best receiver of the day. Didn't look at good as D.A. did last year, but still really good.
- No one this year stood out like Devin Aromashodu did to us last year
- In case anyone was wondering, Jay Cutler's back up is Caleb Hanie and not rookie Dan LeFevour. Hanie looked good with no defense on him but took a slight step backwards during the 7 on 7's. The Bears are screwed if Cutler goes down anyway but it's good to see Hanie look decently good in practice.
- The first string red zone offensive led by Cutler (and mainly targeting Knox) looked just as bad as the product on the actual field the past couple of years.
Finally, some more photos on the day:
90: Julius Peppers; Head Coach Lovie Smith
Robbie Gould signing an autograph for Keith
Charles "Peanut" Tillman
Sexy Rexy on the left and Cubsfan on the right
Last year, I went with a few more friends, including fellow Game Of Inches blog authors Cubsfan4evr and The 'Bright' One. A much better experience. We got out first look and discovered diamond-in-the-rough Devin Aromashodu and got video of back up quarterback Caleb Hanie stating that Jay Cutler sucks and that he should start. A much better experience to say the least.
So now it's becoming a GOI tradition- go down to Bourbannais to scout the team. This year, we had to take two cars and Cubsfan, myself, and six of our friends (TBO is currently in the Dominican Republic scouting for Cubs middle relievers) went down to see the team. Here are a few notes, anecdotes, interviews, pictures, and experiences from the trip:
- We saw a lot of the offense practicing (as they were right in front us). One of the big things that jumped out to us was how many plays were directed towards Johnny Knox. The first team wide outs consisted of Knox, Devin Aromashodu (D.A.), and Rashied Davis. No Hester on either first or second string teams (more on Hester later). It seemed obvious that the vast majority of the plays were designed and many of the targets went towards Knox, not D.A.
- Both D.A. and Knox looked really bad all day and missed a lot of easy passes. Very disappointing considering we at Game Of Inches are huge Aromashodu fans.
- Cubsfan and myself have a Board Bet for fantasy football: Johnny Knox v. Devin Aromashodu. I took Knox just because I think the Bears like him more and I believe he'll get the most opportunities and targets for the team. Friend of the blog Fantasy Football Spin and others have talked extensively about the wide receiver options for fantasy in Chicago. Current ADP had D.A. leading all Bears receivers with 96.74, followed by Knox with 133.63, and Hester with 134.39- and all within four WR slots of each other (with crappy Braylon Edwards being the fourth).
- Training camp has just reinforced my belief that Knox will get more targets than D.A. and thus holds more fantasy value in 2010. Listen, I love D.A. I think he's a legitimate #1 receiver much like Steve Smith was for the Giants last year. He's the biggest wide receiver Chicago has at 6-2, he's fast, and has the best hands on the team. But unfortunately the Bears are a bad organization and have fallen in love with the "#1" fifth round draft pick of 2009. I believe D.A. is the better talent but Knox is the better fantasy play and neither will be on any one of my fantasy teams.
Let's take a break and look at some actual players:
55: Lance Briggs; 54: Brian Urlacher; 95: Anthony Adams; 52: Kevin Malast 91: Tommie Harris; 94: Matt Mayberry; 27: Major Wright; 54: Brian Urlacher 6: Jay Culer 20: Craig Steltz; 26: Tim Jennings; 96: Barry Turner; 80: Earl BennettNow on to some Devin Hester talk:
- His absence from both special teams (where the only name of note returning kicks was Knox) and both the first and second string teams was very odd. When Hester was singing autographs for fans, one fan asked him if he was injured- which is the most logical reason for why Hester was not on the field. However, Hester said he was perfectly healthy. So I'm curious why 23 was not on the field practicing (but was suited up).
- My next guess is that Hester is really really really stupid and new offensive coordinator Mike Martz's system is really complicated and Hester still doesn't understand it. I remember Hester lining up next to Muhsin Muhammad and Moose having to yell at Devin to move over because he was standing at the wrong place on the line of scrimmage. But this is just a guess.
- I asked Hester: Over/Under 1200 yards for him in 2010? He didn't answer but the fans all said "over" and he agreed with them. I then asked him how many TD's he would get in the upcoming season and Hester said 10-11.
- I have an autograph football that many Bears have signed over the past couple of years that I literally held to Hester's face, twice, when he was signing autographs for fans. Not once did Hester sign it. He did however sign an autograph for my friend Keith. That dumb mo fo (Hester, not Keith). But hey, I'm not bitter.
- Some rookie wide out was carrying Hester's pads into the locker room. He probably won't make the team. Take a lesson Dez Bryant!
Anecdote and fun story time!
- One great thing I love about Bears training camp is that everyone is extremely nice and friendly (I'm sure this is the same at all training camps, but I only have experience with the Chicago team). We're all essentially in the same fraternity- the love of the Chicago Bears- so it makes sense. When I fell and hurt my ankle, the fans in line could not have been more nicer to me to help me up. When a firefighter at the camp looked at my ankle but said they couldn't give me an Advil because of "legal" reasons, one fan sitting next to me give me some of his spare Tylenol.
- When sitting in the stands this year, my friends and I were surrounded by many fans who we had the pleasure of talking to. Directly to the right of us (and directly behind Cubsfan) was an elderly gentleman by himself happily eating the Wendy's he had brought into the stadium. He mentioned at least four times how a back up tight end, who probably won't make the team, was wearing Mike Ditka's former number: 89. He also mentioned at least ten times that that used to be Willie Gault's former number. Willie Gault played for the great Bears team in the mid to late eighties and played for the Greatest Team Ever: the '85 Bears. I know this, not because I actually saw Willie Gault play (my parents weren't even married yet by January of 1986) but because this guy had to mentioned it 10 times and acted like my friends and I watched him play. I just turned 23 years old. Now admittedly I look older for my age (especially with the three day old 5 o'clock shadow I was rocking) and some of my friends do too. So say this guy thought we were 26-28 years old. That means we were about 5 when Willie Gault played. NO WE DON'T KNOW WHO WILLIE GAULT IS OR EVEN REMEMBER WHAT NUMBER HE WORE.
- There was a young couple sitting directly in front of us with young girls (their daughters). The husband was a probably a bigger Bears fan than all of us. He recalled the day after his second daughter was born watching a game in the hospital and told his wife that he would take care of his child and be there for her, but would not miss a Bears game. He was smart and brought his daughters along so he could get many of the "elite" players like Urlacher, Cutler, and Pepper's autograph (because players will gladly sign autographs for little kid. But screw the 16-49 year old males who actually buy tickets, follow the sport and team, and purchase merchandise. Again, I'm not bitter.)
- We all agreed that it was extremely stupid of the Bears to drop DE Alex Brown and to not pay him. He would have looked great opposite Julius Peppers, not that expensive, and this is an uncapped year anyway.
Some more TMZ-style interviews I conducted:
- I asked K Robbie Gould if he would ever become the all time NFL leader in field goal percentage. (He's currently 4th all time). Robbie laughed and said he'd have to wait about eight, nine more years to see how everything shakes out and hopes to last that long. He was cool and signed an autograph for me.
- On a fantasy football related note, even though Gould is an extremely accurate and good kicker, he was only the 13th best fantasy kicker in 2009 and the 16th best in 2008. Further proof that there is no amount of research you can do (nor should do) to draft kickers.
- I asked CB Charles "Peanut" Tillman which would he prefer: getting an INT in the game or making sure the receiver he covered didn't get a touch? (The reason I asked him this is because I am personally under the belief that INT are overrated and a cornerback like Oakland's Nnamdi Asomugha or New York's Darrell Revis are awesome because they cover their receiver like white on rice, despite the lack of interceptions) However, Peanut was taken aback by my question and just responded "whatever the defense calls for". I then asked him: Over/Under 7 interceptions for the year? He said "over". He was also cool and signed an autograph for me.
- I asked rookie and soon-to-be-cut safety Quentin Scott which was the better 'Quentin' him or Carlos [White Sox OF Carlos Quentin]. The fans and him laughed and he responded "Oh, Carlos for sure. I played baseball, I know how good he is" I could have gotten an autograph but I already have LB Nick Roach and like nine other guys' autographs that I don't care about so I didn't want to make in 10.
Some final notes about the players I "scouted":
- Although it was an extremely limited amount of times and small sample size, former first round pick offensive lineman Chris Williams looked really good blocking Julius Peppers.
- However, the rest of the offensive line looked awful during drills of offensive vs. defensive lines.
- Northern Illinois alum and 3rd rounder Garrett Wolfe took all the second string snaps in practice. In case anyone was thinking about handcuffing Forte or Taylor with Khalil Bell, don't.
- Rashied Davis, who took Hester's place in practice, looked like the best receiver of the day. Didn't look at good as D.A. did last year, but still really good.
- No one this year stood out like Devin Aromashodu did to us last year
- In case anyone was wondering, Jay Cutler's back up is Caleb Hanie and not rookie Dan LeFevour. Hanie looked good with no defense on him but took a slight step backwards during the 7 on 7's. The Bears are screwed if Cutler goes down anyway but it's good to see Hanie look decently good in practice.
- The first string red zone offensive led by Cutler (and mainly targeting Knox) looked just as bad as the product on the actual field the past couple of years.
Finally, some more photos on the day:
90: Julius Peppers; Head Coach Lovie Smith Robbie Gould signing an autograph for KeithCharles "Peanut" TillmanSexy Rexy on the left and Cubsfan on the right
Do YOU Want To Deal With Jay Cutler?: The Next Bears Offensive Coordintor
I was elated to hear that Bears offensive coordinator Ron Turner was fired. But the next step is equally as important and crucial as firing Turner- hiring his replacement. If the Bears hire someone equally as dumb and worthless as Turner- then his firing will be for naught. I was excited to hear that Charlie Weis' name was rumored to be in the mix for the Bears O-coordinator job. Everywhere Weis has gone, he's always had a top notch offense and he's always been able to develop quarterbacks. Say what you will about Brady Quinn and Jimmy Clausen, but Weis has helped refined and sharpen these guys' skills and I think he would have made a great mentor for Jay Cutler. But my excitement was premature because Weis was recently introduced as the Kansas City Chiefs new offensive coordinator. So who should be the next coordinator?
The two leading candidates seem to be Mike Martz and Jeremy Bates. I have huge reservations about both candidates. First Mike Martz. Martz was Lovie's head coach in St. Louis during the Greatest Show On Turf. But as Martz's career has shown in San Fran and Detroit, it was clear Martz' offense succeeded in St. Louis because of the talent and not because of Martz' great coaching skills. In The Blueprint, author Christopher Price chronicles the recent success of the New England Patriots. He talks about the 2001 Superbowl between the Rams and the Pats. He talks with players and coaches during that year and they fully admit that that defense was very skilled to defend against Kurt Warner and the pass, and not against Marshall Faulk and the running game. In fact, if the Rams had even done a steady dose of the run and the pass, instead of focusing on the pass like a Mike Martz offense will do, the Rams probably would have won that game. This was an in game skill that Martz could have and should have noticed. But he didn't and the Rams ended up losing that game.
Mike Martz loves to throw the ball- probably more than an Andy Reid offense. Which means that if Martz becomes the new O-coordinator, Jay Cutler will probably throw for 5,000 yards. While this might make Cutler a great fantasy QB, it won't help Cutler develop and it won't help the Bears win games. When Martz was the coordinator for Detroit, Jon Kitna threw for a crap ton of yards and TDs. But he still threw a lot of interceptions. Martz just wanted to throw the ball without really developing the QB to help his QB throw the ball accurately. This would not bode well for Cutler. The guys already throws a ton and is pass happy, and already throws a crap ton of INTs. If the Bears do end up hiring Martz, Cutler will still have the same problems and nothing will be solved.
Another problem with the Bears is that they weren't able to get their running game going. I still put most of the blame on the offensive line, but still, in a 16 game season, there's absolutely no reason Matt Forte should not get 1,000 yards rushing. But what has Mike Martz shown that he will help Forte and the running game? In fact, hiring Martz seems like it would stunt the growth even further of Forte because of the pass happy nature of Martz. Sure, Martz knows Lovie very well and I'm sure they would work great together, but it's all about the product on the field. And with Martz, I can't imagine based on the large sample of his work, that the Bears would be a better team.
Next, we have Jeremy Bates. Bates was Cutler's former QB coach in Denver and was USC's offensive coordinator last year. The problem I have with him is that he is fairly inexperienced. He worked for Tampa Bay the year they won the Superbowl, but was the "offensive quality control" coach for two years and only the assistant QB coach one other. He was the QB coach for the Jets in 2005 and the QB coach for Denver in 2007 and 2008. Which led him to his job at USC. I actually wouldn't mind the lack of experience if Bates has proven to me that he did well in his little football time. The year Cutler went to the Pro Bowl was the year the Broncos were essentially down in every game which forced Cutler to throw a lot and gain yards and TD stats. But when you look beneath the numbers, Cutler still wasn't THAT good and clearly the coaching didn't help because he regressed in 2009. And then we go to USC this past year. This decade, USC has historically had great offenses and damn fine QBs including Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, and Mark Sanchez. No matter who seems to be the QB, the QB and offense seemed to do well. Except for last year- the year Bates was the O-coordinator. I'm sure it would help that if Bates was the offensive coordinator that Cutler would respect him, but he hasn't convinced me that he can successfully develop a QB or run a successful offense.
So while I poo-pooed and dismissed the current choices, I frankly don't have any better solutions for you. Ideally, I would like a guy that has shown to me that everywhere he goes, he has had either great offenses or has developed QBs. A guy like Charlie Weis. One of the reasons Kentucky fans were so elated that John Calipari recently became their coach and why Notre Dame fans should be happy with Brian Kelly because everywhere these guys have gone, they have recruited well and won. A lot. I want a guy like that, but unfortunately, I don't think any guy like that is still available.
I think the next best solution then is to find a way to develop Jay Cutler. If you looked at every other stat of his besides INTs, you would like what you saw. He put up more yards, more TDs, and had a better completion percentage than other QB in recent (and probably past) Bears history. But his obvious, glaring problem is his high interception rate. While I admit the cause of this is based upon my amateur eyes and news reports, the reason Cutler throws all these interceptions is because he has such a great arm that he feels he can force balls into tight spaces. But because either we have shitty receivers or because of the low decision making by Cutler, he does not complete a lot of passes when he does that and those balls ended up being intercepted.
I think there is a solvable remedy though for this that is currently within the McCaskeys reach and that is hiring the correct offensive coordinator/ QB coach. I can't remember who, but some sports radio talk show was talking about this and I actually agreed with them. The personality and the coaching style of the two coaches the McCaskeys hire can affect Cutler's personality and hopefully this affect his play.
Cutler is an asshole. Cutler is a dick. Culter is a cunt. Jay Cutler is not like a Peyton Manning where he is nice and people respect him. Cutler is that bully in high school who a lot of people like but rubs everybody else the wrong way. It is because of this personality that Culter defiantly throws passes he thinks he can make. I'm sure Turner and Lovie and everybody else yelled at him for his poor decision making- but he's fucking Jay Cutler and he does what he wants. There were reports that he completely lost respect for Turner and the offensive staff (although I wouldn't have respect for Ron Turner either...)
But I think there still is a way for a coach to get to Cutler. Whether it be that the offensive coordinator is chill and laid back but the QB coach is strict and hard and a dick back to Cutler or vice versa, some coaching change was and is necessary to get through to the jerk that is Jay Cutler. This new offensive coaching staff needs to find a way to get to Cutler and teach and develop him to cut down on those dumb, risky passes that Cutler loves so much and teach him that it's OK to throw the ball away or dump the ball off to Forte when you don't have anything open.
So maybe Jeremy Bates is the right candidate because Cutler has openly admitted that he wants Bates for the job. Or maybe Mike Martz's pass happy offensive will help Cutler. But no matter who becomes the Bears next offensive coordinator, something drastic needs to be done to improve this offense. Either that or draft and pick up better offensive lineman this free agency. That helps as well.
The two leading candidates seem to be Mike Martz and Jeremy Bates. I have huge reservations about both candidates. First Mike Martz. Martz was Lovie's head coach in St. Louis during the Greatest Show On Turf. But as Martz's career has shown in San Fran and Detroit, it was clear Martz' offense succeeded in St. Louis because of the talent and not because of Martz' great coaching skills. In The Blueprint, author Christopher Price chronicles the recent success of the New England Patriots. He talks about the 2001 Superbowl between the Rams and the Pats. He talks with players and coaches during that year and they fully admit that that defense was very skilled to defend against Kurt Warner and the pass, and not against Marshall Faulk and the running game. In fact, if the Rams had even done a steady dose of the run and the pass, instead of focusing on the pass like a Mike Martz offense will do, the Rams probably would have won that game. This was an in game skill that Martz could have and should have noticed. But he didn't and the Rams ended up losing that game.
Mike Martz loves to throw the ball- probably more than an Andy Reid offense. Which means that if Martz becomes the new O-coordinator, Jay Cutler will probably throw for 5,000 yards. While this might make Cutler a great fantasy QB, it won't help Cutler develop and it won't help the Bears win games. When Martz was the coordinator for Detroit, Jon Kitna threw for a crap ton of yards and TDs. But he still threw a lot of interceptions. Martz just wanted to throw the ball without really developing the QB to help his QB throw the ball accurately. This would not bode well for Cutler. The guys already throws a ton and is pass happy, and already throws a crap ton of INTs. If the Bears do end up hiring Martz, Cutler will still have the same problems and nothing will be solved.
Another problem with the Bears is that they weren't able to get their running game going. I still put most of the blame on the offensive line, but still, in a 16 game season, there's absolutely no reason Matt Forte should not get 1,000 yards rushing. But what has Mike Martz shown that he will help Forte and the running game? In fact, hiring Martz seems like it would stunt the growth even further of Forte because of the pass happy nature of Martz. Sure, Martz knows Lovie very well and I'm sure they would work great together, but it's all about the product on the field. And with Martz, I can't imagine based on the large sample of his work, that the Bears would be a better team.
Next, we have Jeremy Bates. Bates was Cutler's former QB coach in Denver and was USC's offensive coordinator last year. The problem I have with him is that he is fairly inexperienced. He worked for Tampa Bay the year they won the Superbowl, but was the "offensive quality control" coach for two years and only the assistant QB coach one other. He was the QB coach for the Jets in 2005 and the QB coach for Denver in 2007 and 2008. Which led him to his job at USC. I actually wouldn't mind the lack of experience if Bates has proven to me that he did well in his little football time. The year Cutler went to the Pro Bowl was the year the Broncos were essentially down in every game which forced Cutler to throw a lot and gain yards and TD stats. But when you look beneath the numbers, Cutler still wasn't THAT good and clearly the coaching didn't help because he regressed in 2009. And then we go to USC this past year. This decade, USC has historically had great offenses and damn fine QBs including Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, and Mark Sanchez. No matter who seems to be the QB, the QB and offense seemed to do well. Except for last year- the year Bates was the O-coordinator. I'm sure it would help that if Bates was the offensive coordinator that Cutler would respect him, but he hasn't convinced me that he can successfully develop a QB or run a successful offense.
So while I poo-pooed and dismissed the current choices, I frankly don't have any better solutions for you. Ideally, I would like a guy that has shown to me that everywhere he goes, he has had either great offenses or has developed QBs. A guy like Charlie Weis. One of the reasons Kentucky fans were so elated that John Calipari recently became their coach and why Notre Dame fans should be happy with Brian Kelly because everywhere these guys have gone, they have recruited well and won. A lot. I want a guy like that, but unfortunately, I don't think any guy like that is still available.
I think the next best solution then is to find a way to develop Jay Cutler. If you looked at every other stat of his besides INTs, you would like what you saw. He put up more yards, more TDs, and had a better completion percentage than other QB in recent (and probably past) Bears history. But his obvious, glaring problem is his high interception rate. While I admit the cause of this is based upon my amateur eyes and news reports, the reason Cutler throws all these interceptions is because he has such a great arm that he feels he can force balls into tight spaces. But because either we have shitty receivers or because of the low decision making by Cutler, he does not complete a lot of passes when he does that and those balls ended up being intercepted.
I think there is a solvable remedy though for this that is currently within the McCaskeys reach and that is hiring the correct offensive coordinator/ QB coach. I can't remember who, but some sports radio talk show was talking about this and I actually agreed with them. The personality and the coaching style of the two coaches the McCaskeys hire can affect Cutler's personality and hopefully this affect his play.
Cutler is an asshole. Cutler is a dick. Culter is a cunt. Jay Cutler is not like a Peyton Manning where he is nice and people respect him. Cutler is that bully in high school who a lot of people like but rubs everybody else the wrong way. It is because of this personality that Culter defiantly throws passes he thinks he can make. I'm sure Turner and Lovie and everybody else yelled at him for his poor decision making- but he's fucking Jay Cutler and he does what he wants. There were reports that he completely lost respect for Turner and the offensive staff (although I wouldn't have respect for Ron Turner either...)
But I think there still is a way for a coach to get to Cutler. Whether it be that the offensive coordinator is chill and laid back but the QB coach is strict and hard and a dick back to Cutler or vice versa, some coaching change was and is necessary to get through to the jerk that is Jay Cutler. This new offensive coaching staff needs to find a way to get to Cutler and teach and develop him to cut down on those dumb, risky passes that Cutler loves so much and teach him that it's OK to throw the ball away or dump the ball off to Forte when you don't have anything open.
So maybe Jeremy Bates is the right candidate because Cutler has openly admitted that he wants Bates for the job. Or maybe Mike Martz's pass happy offensive will help Cutler. But no matter who becomes the Bears next offensive coordinator, something drastic needs to be done to improve this offense. Either that or draft and pick up better offensive lineman this free agency. That helps as well.
Jay Cutler Is An Interception Machine!
When the Bears got Jay Cutler everyone (including myself) was excited. He was a good quarterback who was supposed to turn the Bears around and lead them in the right direction. One thing that wasn't talked about in the honeymoon period after we got him was how many interceptions he throws!
Jay Cutler leads the NFL with 20 ugly interceptions this season. Jake Delhomme and Matthew Stafford are tied for second with 18. Mark Sanchez is in 4th place with 17 interceptions. Matt Ryan in 5th place only has 12, a more respectable number. Out of the top 4, two of them are rookies, so they are given a free pass for their rookie season while they get adjusted to the NFL. This is because many times rookie quarterbacks don't even start their rookie season so they can learn first from the sideline. Jake Delhomme only has 2 interceptions less than Cutler, but no one ever said he was good!
In 2008 Cutler had 18 interceptions which was second most in the NFL. Cutler was good in Denver, but he had a very good receiver in Brandon Marshall, and a better team around him, especially that offensive line. So until we get a better team around Jay Cutler, we shouldn't be surprised he is struggling. He has always thrown a lot of interceptions and now he has less time with a bad offensive line so he is trying to force the ball even more, which he has a track record of doing. So why is everyone surprised he is so bad and throwing so many interceptions?
Jay Cutler leads the NFL with 20 ugly interceptions this season. Jake Delhomme and Matthew Stafford are tied for second with 18. Mark Sanchez is in 4th place with 17 interceptions. Matt Ryan in 5th place only has 12, a more respectable number. Out of the top 4, two of them are rookies, so they are given a free pass for their rookie season while they get adjusted to the NFL. This is because many times rookie quarterbacks don't even start their rookie season so they can learn first from the sideline. Jake Delhomme only has 2 interceptions less than Cutler, but no one ever said he was good!
In 2008 Cutler had 18 interceptions which was second most in the NFL. Cutler was good in Denver, but he had a very good receiver in Brandon Marshall, and a better team around him, especially that offensive line. So until we get a better team around Jay Cutler, we shouldn't be surprised he is struggling. He has always thrown a lot of interceptions and now he has less time with a bad offensive line so he is trying to force the ball even more, which he has a track record of doing. So why is everyone surprised he is so bad and throwing so many interceptions?
Jay Cutler Does Not Suck
I knew this would happen.
I'll find it somewhere, but I knew Chicago fans would turn on Cutler. I thought it would happen differently, but during every Bears QBs bad stretches, Chicago fans get angry and use the QB as a scapegoat.
Now I'm not saying Cutler doesn't deserve ANY blame. He absolutely does. He still is making poor decisions and tries to force a LOT of passes (especially to Greg Olson) and he needs to learn to sometimes just take the sack. But even is Cutler DID do that, wouldn't we all just criticize for not taking risks? It's hard to justify a guy who has THREE more interceptions than TDs and I don't care what team you're on, that's just unacceptable and turning the ball over (and TO ratio) is the single biggest reason a team wins or loses a game. But Cutler turning over the call is not his fault.
1) The Offensive Line
Football Outsiders ranks the Bears O-line as the 15th best O-line. Dead even; middle of the pack. However, in reality the offensive line is worse than that. FO ranks pass blocking mainly by how many times the QB gets sacked. It seems they don't take into account how many times the QB gets rushed or thrown out of the pocket, which also falls on the O-line. And because of the awfulness of Olin Kruetz and Orlando Pace, Cutler gets rushed and thrown out of the pocket A LOT, on top of all the sacks. This makes it harder for Cutler to make throws. Now normally sacks and S/100 do not affect a QBs performance, but for Cutler, they do make a factor. Throughout Cutler's career, there is a strong correlation between S/100 and completion percentage and a decently string correlation between S/100 and TD/INT ratio. Essentially, the worse off the O-line is, the worse off Cutler is
2) The Receiving Corps
If you watched the Bears first game, you saw Cutler throw 4 interceptions. You also saw that three weren't his fault. On one play, Johnny Knox went the wrong way on his route so Cutler threw the ball where he was supposed to, unfortunately, there was a Packer there instead of Knox. Now the receiving corps is a lot better than we all expected, but still a cause for a handful of Cutler's INTs. I do however take less blame off of them because as the season progressed, they have gotten better and Cutler still hasn't. I.E.- the last game Bears at Eagles where Cutler was missing receivers like Cutler was missing insulin. However, you put Brandon Marshall, Eddie Royal, and Brandon Stokley back with Cutler and I guarantee you Cutler performs better.
3) Ron Turner
I don't know who Turner had naked pictures of, but can we please burn them so Turner has no leverage over people in the Bears front office. This offense has been bad for a long time with multiple players and coaches. It is obvious that Turner is an awful coach and is not qualified to anything football related, nevertheless a NFL offense. A bad coordinator just hurts his offense and Turner hurts his offense.
4) The Running Game
This absolutely goes back to the offensive line. But an O-line can be great at pass blocking and bad at run blocking (or vice versa). The poor blocking up front causes Matt Forte to be crappy. This means teams don't have to respect the run and can send extra defenders into coverage instead of inside the box. This again just makes Jay Cutler's job even tougher.
This entire offense is really bad and I believe the entire blame should not fall on Cutler for the poor effort and lack of talent of the players around him. Do you all forget just how much you loved Cutler just a month or two ago? This guy is young, the franchise QB, and a guy that will be on the team for a long time. We can build our offense around Jay Cutler and just because he's having a bad stretch, doesn't not mean you should be this hard on Cutler. But what do you think?
How Are Cutler, Orton, and Cassel Doing On Their New Teams?
I was watching the video TBO posted where Cutler says "you know" more times than Joe Morgan says something dumb. It got me thinking, the whole reason the Bears got Jay Cutler was because Josh McDaniels was actively seeking to get Matt Cassel in a trade. The Broncos, Chiefs, and Redskins among others also were actively seeking to get Cassel. The Chiefs did end up getting Cassel, but 10 games into the regular season you think to yourself, was it really worth it? Do teams really want Cassel?
Last year, Cassel Randy Moss and Wes Welker to throw to as well as a great O-line. So you knew his numbers were skewed a bit. Even still, Cassel was never that efficient ranking 17th in DYAR and 12th in DVOA. Those who liked him because of his fantasy football production also were misled the same way we were misled my liking Tyler Thigpen- Cassel was able to run the ball pretty well (again, helped by the Pats O-line). Cassel was 10th in passer rating, 10th in YPG, and 15th in YPA with a 1.91 TD/INT ratio. So how's Cassel doing this year?
To start off with, the Chiefs have an awful O-line ranking 27th in pass blocking (and as any Bears fan can tell you now, it's hard as hell for a QB to throw the ball with an awful line) and Dwayne Bowe and um, uh, whoever the Chiefs #2 receiver was before Chambers arrived are much much much worse than Moss and Welker. However, Cassel still took a 11.5 hit in passer rating, 1.2 YPA hit, and is completing 8.4% less passes. Yet despite this, his TD/INT ratio has gone up .09 points.
Normally, I would think that maybe I would start talking about how shitty Cassel is, but I think looking at Kyle Orton and Jay Cutler from this year to last year is a great example of just how important a line and receiving corps can be.
Jay Cutler went for playing for a team that ranked 4th in pass blocking to a team that now ranks 15th (and I think this is an example where stats can lie b/c I feel Cutler being able to scramble and throws the ball before he gets sacked screws this number because no way in hell the Bears are only middle of the pack in pass blocking). Anyway, Cutler is going from a great line to a shitty one. He's going from a 1.39 TD/INT ratio to a .833 ratio. He took a .56 hit in TD/INT ratio, 11.5 hit in passer rating, a .70 hit in YPA (and to put this into perspective, he has a 7.3, 7.5, and 7.3 YPA in Denver. He's down to 6.6 this year), but only a slight hit in completion percentage. .
Compare this now to Kyle Orton who went from a shitty situation to a better one. Last year the Bears ranked 11th in pass blocking and this year the Broncos rank 7th (again, a slight situation where numbers lie because football outsiders rank pass blocking by sacks and Orton also does a fine job alluding sacks). Trust me, I've actually watched football, Orton is in a much better situation and this shows in his numbers. He has increased his passer rating 8.2 points, his YPA by 0.6, is now completing 3.5% more passes, and has increased his TD/INT ratio by 0.7 percent.
Last year Cutler was sacked only 20 times. This year, he's already been sacked 20. Last year Cutler got sacked 1.79 times for every 100 times he's thrown the ball. This year, he's getting sacked a whooping 5.26 times every times per every 100 pass attempt. Compare this to Orton. Last year Orton was sacked 27 times. This year he's only gotten sacked 14. Orton got sacked 5.81 times per every 100 attempts. This year he's getting sacked 4.4 times per every 100 attempts.
I think this Orton/Cutler trade just goes to show you how important a line can be. So with this in mind, let's look to see how sacks per every 100 attempt has affected each players numbers.
Cassel (+2.66 sacks per 100 attempts)
YPA: -1.2
Completion Percentage: -8.4
Passer Rating: -11.5
TD/INT ratio: +.09
Cutler (+1.79 sacks per game)
YPA: -0.7
Completion Percentage: -0.6
Passer Rating: -11.5
TD/INT ratio: -0.56
Orton (-1.41 sacks per 100 attempts)
YPA: +0.6
Completion Percentage: +3.5
Passer Rating: +8.2
TD/INT ratio: +0.7
Statistically speaking, these numbers are pretty close to each other. The sacks per 100 attempts are vastly different, yet the numbers below seem pretty darn close. The most discernible effect S/100 (sacks per 100 pass attempts) seems to have is on YPA. The more a QB has gotten sacked, the more his YPA is hurt.
Obviously, analyzing three players over 1.5 seasons is absolutely not enough to determine 100% conclusive data. But it certainly just reinforces the point that offensive lines are so important to a team.
So to answer my original question, how are the Chiefs liking this Matt Cassel trade now? Maybe if they put a good team around him Cassel would succeed. And to the point that McDaniels was actively trying to trade for Cassel? He should have kept his big mouth shut because his O-line is good enough for any QB whether it be Cassel or Cutler or Orton. However, as a Bears fan, I'm happy as hell McDaniels is dumb.
Last year, Cassel Randy Moss and Wes Welker to throw to as well as a great O-line. So you knew his numbers were skewed a bit. Even still, Cassel was never that efficient ranking 17th in DYAR and 12th in DVOA. Those who liked him because of his fantasy football production also were misled the same way we were misled my liking Tyler Thigpen- Cassel was able to run the ball pretty well (again, helped by the Pats O-line). Cassel was 10th in passer rating, 10th in YPG, and 15th in YPA with a 1.91 TD/INT ratio. So how's Cassel doing this year?
To start off with, the Chiefs have an awful O-line ranking 27th in pass blocking (and as any Bears fan can tell you now, it's hard as hell for a QB to throw the ball with an awful line) and Dwayne Bowe and um, uh, whoever the Chiefs #2 receiver was before Chambers arrived are much much much worse than Moss and Welker. However, Cassel still took a 11.5 hit in passer rating, 1.2 YPA hit, and is completing 8.4% less passes. Yet despite this, his TD/INT ratio has gone up .09 points.
Normally, I would think that maybe I would start talking about how shitty Cassel is, but I think looking at Kyle Orton and Jay Cutler from this year to last year is a great example of just how important a line and receiving corps can be.
Jay Cutler went for playing for a team that ranked 4th in pass blocking to a team that now ranks 15th (and I think this is an example where stats can lie b/c I feel Cutler being able to scramble and throws the ball before he gets sacked screws this number because no way in hell the Bears are only middle of the pack in pass blocking). Anyway, Cutler is going from a great line to a shitty one. He's going from a 1.39 TD/INT ratio to a .833 ratio. He took a .56 hit in TD/INT ratio, 11.5 hit in passer rating, a .70 hit in YPA (and to put this into perspective, he has a 7.3, 7.5, and 7.3 YPA in Denver. He's down to 6.6 this year), but only a slight hit in completion percentage. .
Compare this now to Kyle Orton who went from a shitty situation to a better one. Last year the Bears ranked 11th in pass blocking and this year the Broncos rank 7th (again, a slight situation where numbers lie because football outsiders rank pass blocking by sacks and Orton also does a fine job alluding sacks). Trust me, I've actually watched football, Orton is in a much better situation and this shows in his numbers. He has increased his passer rating 8.2 points, his YPA by 0.6, is now completing 3.5% more passes, and has increased his TD/INT ratio by 0.7 percent.
Last year Cutler was sacked only 20 times. This year, he's already been sacked 20. Last year Cutler got sacked 1.79 times for every 100 times he's thrown the ball. This year, he's getting sacked a whooping 5.26 times every times per every 100 pass attempt. Compare this to Orton. Last year Orton was sacked 27 times. This year he's only gotten sacked 14. Orton got sacked 5.81 times per every 100 attempts. This year he's getting sacked 4.4 times per every 100 attempts.
I think this Orton/Cutler trade just goes to show you how important a line can be. So with this in mind, let's look to see how sacks per every 100 attempt has affected each players numbers.
Cassel (+2.66 sacks per 100 attempts)
YPA: -1.2
Completion Percentage: -8.4
Passer Rating: -11.5
TD/INT ratio: +.09
Cutler (+1.79 sacks per game)
YPA: -0.7
Completion Percentage: -0.6
Passer Rating: -11.5
TD/INT ratio: -0.56
Orton (-1.41 sacks per 100 attempts)
YPA: +0.6
Completion Percentage: +3.5
Passer Rating: +8.2
TD/INT ratio: +0.7
Statistically speaking, these numbers are pretty close to each other. The sacks per 100 attempts are vastly different, yet the numbers below seem pretty darn close. The most discernible effect S/100 (sacks per 100 pass attempts) seems to have is on YPA. The more a QB has gotten sacked, the more his YPA is hurt.
Obviously, analyzing three players over 1.5 seasons is absolutely not enough to determine 100% conclusive data. But it certainly just reinforces the point that offensive lines are so important to a team.
So to answer my original question, how are the Chiefs liking this Matt Cassel trade now? Maybe if they put a good team around him Cassel would succeed. And to the point that McDaniels was actively trying to trade for Cassel? He should have kept his big mouth shut because his O-line is good enough for any QB whether it be Cassel or Cutler or Orton. However, as a Bears fan, I'm happy as hell McDaniels is dumb.
What the fuck Jay Cuntler?
How low does your blood sugar have to be to throw 5 interceptions against a team on a 4 game losing streak with no offense to speak off? I know the receivers are short and slow, but so are the DB's so how about throwing it to the guys in white. You know it's a bad day when the QB has almost as many picks as the team has points. People still defend Cutler because he does throw for 300 yards, and the offensive line is brutal, but our patience is going to run short especially with the douche attitude he has every single game.
However, if you deeper into the numbers, there is hope. Cutler leads the league with 338 passing attempts, yet his comp%, yards/att, and TD% have all stayed constant since last season and his career as a whole. The only stats that are out of the ordinary is is an interception percentage that is at 5% this year as compared to 3.o and 2.9 the previous 2 seasons. His sack percentage has spiked from 1.8% last year to a whopping 5.3% per dropback this year. Obviously, the regression in talent in the WR and OL has taken a toll on Cutlers overall performance, but assuming he regresses to the mean with a larger sample size the interceptions should begin to normalize. However that does nothing to fix our crappy defense. Fuck this team
Jay Cutler Gets a Two Year Extension
ESPN.com reports that the Bears have given Cuntler a two year extension that will keep him on the team until 2013. Cutler is scheduled to make $20 million from now until 2011 and gets another $20 millions in guaranteed under the extension. Cutler will make around $50 million over the next five years.
Can we please sign Cutler until he's at LEAST 45? I'm sure he's probably making too much money but I don't care. Hell, give him and Briggs most of the salary cap and give everyone else a dollar for all I care. (That's a popular strategy in fantasy football, I'm sure it'll work in real life, right?)
Either way, I'm happy Cutler gets an extension, but fuck is he making a lot of money
This extension means more love between Cutler and Greg Olson
Can we please sign Cutler until he's at LEAST 45? I'm sure he's probably making too much money but I don't care. Hell, give him and Briggs most of the salary cap and give everyone else a dollar for all I care. (That's a popular strategy in fantasy football, I'm sure it'll work in real life, right?)
Either way, I'm happy Cutler gets an extension, but fuck is he making a lot of money
This extension means more love between Cutler and Greg Olson
Relax Chicago Fans...
Dear Chicago Bears fans,
One of my greatest worries is that you will turn on Jay Cutler. I can easily foresee that Jay struggles in is season debut, new team jitters or what have you. And then in his second game, when the Bears face the Pittsburgh Steelers, he just will flat out suck because let's face it, he'll be facing the best defense (and a well rested on at that). So if Jay Cutler sucks it up for two straight games, DO NOT boo him!
He is not Rex Grossman. He is not Kyle Orton. He is not ANY past Bears quarterback. He is better than all of them. So if Jay Cutler sucks for ANY period of time, just relax. It will be alright. I know you will be pissed at him, but let's not do anything to harm our franchise QB. OK.
So if and when Cutler starts to slide or whatever, just remember, we actually have a GOOD quarterback. Thank You.
Sincerely,
Sexy Rexy
One of my greatest worries is that you will turn on Jay Cutler. I can easily foresee that Jay struggles in is season debut, new team jitters or what have you. And then in his second game, when the Bears face the Pittsburgh Steelers, he just will flat out suck because let's face it, he'll be facing the best defense (and a well rested on at that). So if Jay Cutler sucks it up for two straight games, DO NOT boo him!
He is not Rex Grossman. He is not Kyle Orton. He is not ANY past Bears quarterback. He is better than all of them. So if Jay Cutler sucks for ANY period of time, just relax. It will be alright. I know you will be pissed at him, but let's not do anything to harm our franchise QB. OK.
So if and when Cutler starts to slide or whatever, just remember, we actually have a GOOD quarterback. Thank You.
Sincerely,
Sexy Rexy
Can people shut up about John Elway
Everything I have heard about Jay Cutler on ESPN is that he needs to shut up and stop pretending like he is the next John Elway, or ever worse better than John Elway. Stewart Scott made some smart ass comment about how Elway has won 15 playoff games and 2 SB, while Cutler has never won at anything in life. Even his Mom thinks Jay is a complete loser!
Let us look at a thing we at GOI like to call "numbers".
Elway started as a 23 year old rookie for the Broncos in 1983 with a god awful season. In 11 games, he compiled a 55 QB rating thanks to a 47.5 completion %, 7-14 TD-INT ratio with a league average 6.4 YPA. He went 3-7 as a starter and lost the playoff game.
Cutler started as a 23 year old rookie for the Broncos in 2006 playing in only 6 games because of the immortal Jake Plummer, who has more career picks than TDs. He had an 89 QB rating while completing 59% of his passes, and having a 9-5 TD-INT ratio with a well above average 7.3 YPA.
In Elway's first 10 year in the league, he never had a completion % of better than 58.6, a QB rating above 80% just once(normally in low 70's), 158-157 TD-INT ratio and a YPA around 7. If I randomly gave you those numbers, would you think this is an all-time great QB? Not so much
Cutler, in his 3 years, 2 of which he has started every game, has a rating of 87.1, 62.5%, 54-37 TD-INT ratio, and a YPA of 7.4
Elway stepped up his game in the final 6 years of his career, resulting in 2 super bowls, but his best 6 years are only as good as Cutler has been in his first 3. Certainly Cutler will improve over the years, and possible accumulate some SB wins himself. To say that Cutler's name doesn't belong in the same sentence as Elway is just wrong. One day it may be the other way around. Elway may have the stronger arm, but so does Kyle Farnsworth. So shut up ESPN and look at some numbers before you make pretentious remarks pretending your authority on sports supersedes things like numbers and stats.
Let us look at a thing we at GOI like to call "numbers".
Elway started as a 23 year old rookie for the Broncos in 1983 with a god awful season. In 11 games, he compiled a 55 QB rating thanks to a 47.5 completion %, 7-14 TD-INT ratio with a league average 6.4 YPA. He went 3-7 as a starter and lost the playoff game.
Cutler started as a 23 year old rookie for the Broncos in 2006 playing in only 6 games because of the immortal Jake Plummer, who has more career picks than TDs. He had an 89 QB rating while completing 59% of his passes, and having a 9-5 TD-INT ratio with a well above average 7.3 YPA.
In Elway's first 10 year in the league, he never had a completion % of better than 58.6, a QB rating above 80% just once(normally in low 70's), 158-157 TD-INT ratio and a YPA around 7. If I randomly gave you those numbers, would you think this is an all-time great QB? Not so much
Cutler, in his 3 years, 2 of which he has started every game, has a rating of 87.1, 62.5%, 54-37 TD-INT ratio, and a YPA of 7.4
Elway stepped up his game in the final 6 years of his career, resulting in 2 super bowls, but his best 6 years are only as good as Cutler has been in his first 3. Certainly Cutler will improve over the years, and possible accumulate some SB wins himself. To say that Cutler's name doesn't belong in the same sentence as Elway is just wrong. One day it may be the other way around. Elway may have the stronger arm, but so does Kyle Farnsworth. So shut up ESPN and look at some numbers before you make pretentious remarks pretending your authority on sports supersedes things like numbers and stats.
Caleb Hanie thinks Jay Cutler sucks, captured live!
At the Bears training camp, I wanted to know how Caleb Hanie thought he compared to Jay Cutler. See for yourself what he had to say!
