D.J. Moore intercepted Jay Cutler during minicamp practice Tuesday. Cutler retreated to the sideline, where he spoke to Brandon Marshall, Devin Hester and Earl Bennett in serious tones, gesticulating about how a route should be run. A few seconds later, Cutler started laughing so hard his helmet, which had been pushed to the back of his head, almost fell off.
It was the latest sign that we might finally be seeing the real Jay Cutler. The player we’ve watched for the last three years has been an impostor, somebody brought in to execute somebody else’s idea of what an offense should be, even if it doesn’t maximize his skills. But with his former offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates now the quarterbacks coach and with Marshall finally giving the Bears a legitimate No. 1 receiver, Cutler could be approaching the kind of comfort zone he hasn’t experienced since leaving the Denver Broncos.
This isn’t Mike Martz’s offense or even Mike Tice’s. This is his offense, which is as it should’ve been all along.
“It’s stuff that I do well,” Cutler said of the new offense. “It’s stuff that I know. As a quarterback, you want to be in the same offense over and over and over again so you can get a good feel for it and so you know all the nuances. This offense, I was in it three years in Denver, so this is my fourth year in it. I’m very comfortable with it.”
Every conversation about Cutler begins with a caveat. Anything is possible if the offensive line protects him for a change. The new offense should take pressure off the left tackle, and the return of 2011 first-round pick Gabe Carimi should help, but there’s no guarantee this group can protect Cutler the way an elite quarterback needs to be protected.
If Cutler doesn’t have to constantly avoid slobbering defensive linemen, the Bears could have an offense the likes of which they haven’t seen since Clark Shaughnessy was drawing up plays.
“We want to get rid of the ball,” Cutler said. “The ball is going to be gone. We want to get it to the playmakers. We want to get the ball to Devin, Brandon and Matt Forte and get it out of my hands as fast as possible. That’s probably something that we’re going to work really hard on in training camp and those preseason games.”
Think about it from Cutler’s point of view. In Bates, he has the coach he has had the most success with. In Marshall, he has one of the league’s top receivers. He has known Bennett since college. Marshall, Bennett and Hester have played with Cutler almost 10 years combined, which might be why Tice said communication has been off the charts.
“Everyone’s not going to walk around like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, everyone responds differently,” Marshall said of his new/old quarterback. “With Jay, he’s really fiery, he’s really passionate, but at the same time, he can have a little fun on the football field.” When is the last time it looked like Cutler was having fun playing football? More often, he looks like he’s trying to pass a kidney stone out there.
Cutler is even calling audibles, which he wasn’t allowed to do under Martz. He has been more outspoken in recent interviews and has agreed to do a weekly hour-long radio show. Imagine, Jay Cutler, media darling.
“I’m in my fourth year here, everything is a little more comfortable, and I’m comfortable with my surroundings,” he said.
I'm getting to that age where a lifetime warranty just doesn't mean as much to me anymore as an afternoon nap.
Honey Badger Don't Care. Honey Badger Don't Give a Shit.
One thing I believe will help allow the offense to get off to a quick start is Cutler's familiarity with both the offense and the major players in it. He's worked with Marshall and Hester for three years of his career and with Bennett for even longer. Now all we need is Matt Forte back in the fold and even the backfield will have it's key contributor.
For the life of me I don't know why it took them so long to decide to bring Jeremy Bates in. He should have been at the top of the list. I don't know. Maybe they were afraid of the offense becoming to "Bronco-ized" but in reality that's exactly what it needed. Something to reach back into Jay's past and his comfort zone.
Outside of the concerns about the line there's been nothing but koolaid and cupcakes rolling out of these OTA's so expectations are high and they should be. We've waited long enough and Jay Cutler has waited long enough to have a first class battery of players surrounding him so that his true skills could shine. No wonder he's smiling these days.
I'm getting to that age where a lifetime warranty just doesn't mean as much to me anymore as an afternoon nap.
Honey Badger Don't Care. Honey Badger Don't Give a Shit.
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