Give Cuter his Extension

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Originally Posted by GermansbombedPH

let me start with saying that we may have to use the Franchise Tag on Melton next year again. I don't want to see us having the talks about who should get the Tag, Cutler or Melton. (That's a HUGE assumption G and I don't think there's one chance in ten that it will happen. Emery needs some of Melton's cap dollars back this year and both he and Cliff Stein are smart enough not to paint themselves into that corner. I believe they'll get a deal with Melton done.)

What I don't like about what you are saying is that we are in no rush. I think that's wrong. We are in a rush to free up Cap Space. We know what we have and what they can do. We know that the OL was bad and Cutler needs way more help than he got. (No, this is what I wrote; "It doesn't seem like either he or Marshall are in any rush to get an extension done. Both are making good money and if they continue to be as successful as a duo as they were last year their price only goes up. They may be the ones who prefer to wait out this season when they figure the Bears will be in a better cap position.")


Emery and Trestman haven't brought him in, but what would it take to get a better QB than Cutler that will help us as much as Cutler does the next 2-3 years? We waited about 20 years to get a good QB and now that we have one we should wait and see what happens? The window to win the SB with the current D we have is closing and closing fast. There is no RGIII or Luck for us available that would lead us to the POs as rookies. The chances to get a Wilson are slim. We are in a win now mode that hopefully stays for lots of years. Can't win every year but the Bears are just to good a team that they will get those great Picks to get those great 1st rounders we hope we draft.


Angelo/Smith started a project with Cutler and Emery/Trestman now have to work with it. If they like it or not, but having Cutler leaving for nothing as UFA would be a bad move and a move I would put against Emery for sure. I hope Trestman realizes that he is not only a QB coach...

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I'm not saying that it shouldn't get done. I'd prefer that it did. I'm just listing reasons why it may not be as big of a priority as other matters right now for either side. I don't think this one will be as much of a slam dunk as his last extension was so with everything else Emery and Stein have on their plates right now it just seems to make sense to me that they can wait. That's CAN wait, not SHOULD wait.

I'm sure they have their reasons and I'm sure they're good ones so I'm not gonna worry about it. Cutler and Marshall are in the fold. It's the guys who aren't and what Melton's tag is costing us that I'm focused on right now and I imagine they are as well. Once they get their vet roster settled and the draft out of the way I'd be willing to bet they'll start looking into it more seriously.

well, was early in the morning and misread that second part. Sorry for that.

My problem is that it should already have been done. Melton should have been paid already around mid season. Cutler the same. They should have done it already. Now, we are here with many problems and no time to get them solved. Free Agency starts in less than a week and we have no Cap Space to sign anybody, can't even keep all our Free Agents as of now.

Is that anything like Tice being a O line guru because if it is we're done for already.

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Originally Posted by WindyCity

You got to give Trestman a year to work with him and decide.

Trestman is a QB guru.

If he cannot fix some of Jays issues than no one will.

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Originally Posted by GermansbombedPH

let me start with saying that we may have to use the Franchise Tag on Melton next year again. I don't want to see us having the talks about who should get the Tag, Cutler or Melton.

What I don't like about what you are saying is that we are in no rush. I think that's wrong. We are in a rush to free up Cap Space. We know what we have and what they can do. We know that the OL was bad and Cutler needs way more help than he got.


Emery and Trestman haven't brought him in, but what would it take to get a better QB than Cutler that will help us as much as Cutler does the next 2-3 years? We waited about 20 years to get a good QB and now that we have one we should wait and see what happens? The window to win the SB with the current D we have is closing and closing fast. There is no RGIII or Luck for us available that would lead us to the POs as rookies. The chances to get a Wilson are slim. We are in a win now mode that hopefully stays for lots of years. Can't win every year but the Bears are just to good a team that they will get those great Picks to get those great 1st rounders we hope we draft.


Angelo/Smith started a project with Cutler and Emery/Trestman now have to work with it. If they like it or not, but having Cutler leaving for nothing as UFA would be a bad move and a move I would put against Emery for sure. I hope Trestman realizes that he is not only a QB coach...

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I disagree that we are in a win now mode . I think this is a team in a transition year while Emery and Trestman evaluate everything ( especially QB ) , so I wouldn't be surprised to see a 7-9 season this year and even MORE roster turnover going into next season .

Maybe they'll surprise , but I actually expect them to get a little worse b4 they get better .

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Originally Posted by GermansbombedPH

well, was early in the morning and misread that second part. Sorry for that. (No need to apologize.....just stop fucking up like that OK? :bah: Just kidding G. :13_4_9[1]:)

My problem is that it should already have been done. Melton should have been paid already around mid season. Cutler the same. They should have done it already. Now, we are here with many problems and no time to get them solved. Free Agency starts in less than a week and we have no Cap Space to sign anybody, can't even keep all our Free Agents as of now.

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OK you say they should already have been signed but with what? Where was the cap money to do it then anymore than there is now? There wasn't and what little extra we had from last year was rolled into this year anyhow.

Don't take this wrong G but you're a great theorist who's a little short on reality and practicality. You call out these thoughts like they should just have been done on a whim yet all of the guys we're talking about will ask for and get significant guarantees. Those are the dollars that hurt your cap if they don't perform to the level of the contract.

You're already criticizing the Forte deal because you believe he should have played better last year yet by waiting it out and using our leverage we were able to sign him for far less than many other backs who aren't even as good. We're talking about tens of millions in guarantees for these guys G and good negotiations take time.

We make a bad deal and a guy isn't living up to his contract and based on what I've seen so far you'll be the first guy screaming to cut his ass. Well guess what? All the guaranteed money says you can't cut his ass without doing serious damage to your cap and the Bears are very cautious that way.

So you can't have it both ways G. Have you ever heard this saying?

Marry in haste, (and) repent at leisure.

Prov. If you marry someone you do not know well, or decide to marry someone without first carefully considering what you are doing, you will probably regret it for a long time.

Well Trestman described the relationship between him and Cutler as needing to be a marriage of sorts and I think he just wants to be sure of that relationship before he proposes with a new contract offer. Hell they haven't even been able to meet and talk over the offense yet and won't be able to until next month. Take it easy brother. If it's gonna get done it will.

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Originally Posted by soulman

OK you say they should already have been signed but with what? Where was the cap money to do it then anymore than there is now? There wasn't and what little extra we had from last year was rolled into this year anyhow.

Don't take this wrong G but you're a great theorist who's a little short on reality and practicality. You call out these thoughts like they should just have been done on a whim yet all of the guys we're talking about will ask for and get significant guarantees. Those are the dollars that hurt your cap if they don't perform to the level of the contract.

You're already criticizing the Forte deal because you believe he should have played better last year yet by waiting it out and using our leverage we were able to sign him for far less than many other backs who aren't even as good. We're talking about tens of millions in guarantees for these guys G and good negotiations take time.

We make a bad deal and a guy isn't living up to his contract and based on what I've seen so far you'll be the first guy screaming to cut his ass. Well guess what? All the guaranteed money says you can't cut his ass without doing serious damage to your cap and the Bears are very cautious that way.

So you can't have it both ways G. Have you ever heard this saying?

Marry in haste, (and) repent at leisure.

Prov. If you marry someone you do not know well, or decide to marry someone without first carefully considering what you are doing, you will probably regret it for a long time.

Well Trestman described the relationship between him and Cutler as needing to be a marriage of sorts and I think he just wants to be sure of that relationship before he proposes with a new contract offer. Hell they haven't even been able to meet and talk over the offense yet and won't be able to until next month. Take it easy brother. If it's gonna get done it will.

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I will not scream for Forte to get cut. I just thought we should have never given him that contract. Now we have him under contract and he will play for us. After that he will become a UFA and bounce from team to team as backup. That's what I think will happen with Forte. I just have a different philosophy when it comes to paying RBs.

I think with Stein, we have a guy that is great at making contracts and juggeling with the numbers. We have a problem with the Cap as of now. We could save some of that Cap Space to upgrade our team by giving Cutler the contract he will get. I think we will regret it for not giving him the extension already. We would be able to give him a better team around him that helps him and our team. I think about Flacco. Thought the same about him last year too. Now look at what contract he got. I'm not saying Cutler will have THAT great of a post season, but he could win a SB and that alone will give his salary a big bump up in the air. With the ??? surrounding him, we could get him for less.


I do think we are in win now mode with Marshall, Tillman, Urlacher, Peppers and Briggs all not being young anymore. They are in their prime years or already past their prime. Restructuring the D will take longer than 1 year and I think the D is good enough to win the SB. Now it's time to get the O going. Don't think we need STs being in the Top5 to win like Lovie and Toub did. Hell, Lovie set this team back for a few years. Letting Graham go was stupid. He just wanted to play CB too and look, he isn't that bad at it ;)


We have and had the money to sign Cutler. I just needs to be done. Flacco has the biggest contract in history and a Cap Hit for next year that is ~3 million less than Cutlers.
Cutler is our QB and that won't change.

1) No, as much as it will suck(cap wise and only cap wise) if he fullfills his potential this year. It would suck just as much to have him signed long term w/no ability to get out if he implodes this year. This is a great time for the team to finally evaluate Cutler w/out the GM or coaches as any henderance. If that means he succeeds and he gets a ton of money, more power to him, and the Bears who really have found the franchise QB most believe he can be; if not...time to move one, b/c either the guy can get you to a SB or he cannot, after that I don't care; and if Trestman/Emery don't think he can get that done then how good he is relative to the next guy really doesn't matter.

2) Forte was a great deal for both parties, and he did okay last year given that he was truly misused. He still had 1K rushing yards, and seeing as he wasn't used near enough in the passing game, his total yards should have been down. My biggest problem w/him was how easily he seemed to go down at contact. but stat wise he really didn't have a down year.

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Originally Posted by GermansbombedPH

I'm calling it now. We will not find a better QB. We invested lots of money and time in him. He was a Pro Bowler and is as talented as a QB can be.

We are in win now mode and he is the best QB we can get the next 2-3 years. Extend him, free up Cap Space and use this Cap Space + a restructured Marshall contract to give Cutler an Oline. He needs the help and he needs to be healthy to help us.

Cutler is a 100 million dollar decision and it should have been made already. He should be our QB for the next 4-5 years.

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preach

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Originally Posted by GermansbombedPH

I'm calling it now. We will not find a better QB. We invested lots of money and time in him. He was a Pro Bowler and is as talented as a QB can be.

We are in win now mode and he is the best QB we can get the next 2-3 years. Extend him, free up Cap Space and use this Cap Space + a restructured Marshall contract to give Cutler an Oline. He needs the help and he needs to be healthy to help us.

Cutler is a 100 million dollar decision and it should have been made already. He should be our QB for the next 4-5 years.

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Since we are unlikely to find a better one in FA or the draft next year, sure sign him. But, it should be noted that he is a paper probowler. He was not voted in, he got in because someone backed out.

BUT, yes, he is a probowl QB.

Problem is, how much do you sign him for? Looking at the Romo, Flacco and now Rogers contracts, he is gonna get paid. I think he gets somewhere between Romo and Flacco (and that is going to hamstring the Bears financials for a long time)

My gut feeling is that Cutler will show us this season that he is a good, but not elite, QB. Nothing wrong with that, but we shouldn't pay elite money to a "good" quarterback. Pay a fair price for what the Bears will get out of the deal.

I have no problem with the Bears letting Cutler play out this season. Both sides will then have a better understanding of Cutler's true value and worth.

And hey, if Cutler does look like an elite QB, then pay up.