FROM ESPN.COM
Will someone please give Jay Cutler his pacifier, hand him his favorite blankie and put him back in his crib for his afternoon nap? Because if he cries anymore about a trade that didn't happen, we'll have to check his Pampers.
Cutler is the quarterback of the Denver Broncos. At least for now he is.
Turns out the Broncos are/were shopping him. The three-way trade between the Broncos, New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn't reach critical mass, but names (Cutler to the Bucs, Matt Cassel to the Broncos) and numbers (first- and fourth-round draft picks to the Patriots) were discussed.
But it didn't happen. Repeat: didn't happen.
Instead, the Patriots traded Cassel and his franchise-tag salary to the Kansas City Chiefs. And Cutler is still a Bronco.
But the mere thought of a possible trade upset Cutler so much that he went into full waaaa-waaaa-waaaa mode, wailing like an infant. Why are they being so mean to me? That sort of thing.
"I'm upset," he told The Denver Post. "I mean, I'm really shocked at this point."
And this from Cutler's agent, James "Bus" Cook, who told The Associated Press, "Nobody's going to call the [New York] Giants and ask for Eli [Manning]. Nobody's calling the [Indianapolis] Colts asking about Peyton [Manning]. [Tom] Brady? Come on. So, why call Denver and ask about Jay? And if they do call, why not say, 'That's not for discussion. What else do you want?'"
Why call Denver and ask about Cutler? Because the Broncos haven't reached the playoffs since the 2005 season. Because Cutler's record as a starter is 17-20. Because new Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels just happened to coach Cassel last season. And Cassel's team finished 11-5, including a 41-7 victory against Cutler's Broncos in October.
Nobody is calling the Giants and the Colts about the Manning brothers because the Manning brothers actually reach the postseason and have won Super Bowls. And here's guessing somebody called the Patriots asking whether Brady might be available.
Cook, more than anyone, should know that anything is possible in the NFL. Just ask Brett Favre, one of Cook's longtime clients.
Don't get me wrong -- Cutler is a talent, possibly a major talent. His numbers keep tracking upward (4,526 passing yards, 25 touchdowns in '08), but so do his turnovers (18 interceptions, including four in Denver's last three games -- all losses) and hissy fits.
None of this Cutler trade talk likely would have happened if Mike Shanahan were still the Broncos' head coach. Shanahan is the guy who drafted Cutler with the 11th pick of the 2006 draft. They were attached at the hip pads.
But Shanahan is Broncos history. It happens. Last week it happened to 11-time Pro Bowl linebacker Derrick Brooks of the Bucs. He was cut after 14 years.
Brooks didn't pout like Cutler. And his agent didn't issue any angry criticisms of the Bucs' decision. Instead, Brooks articulated the essential truth of the NFL: It's business, not personal.
"Everybody has a picture that they want painted their own particular way, but when the picture's not painted your way, you don't kick and scream," Brooks told reporters. "You be a man about it."
Cutler is kicking and screaming. Poor baby. He stiffed the Broncos when they requested a kiss-and-make-up session. Word is he won't even talk to McDaniels on the phone.
So what if the Broncos considered proposals from the Bucs? Who cares whether they listened to an offer from the Detroit Lions? When you haven't reached the playoffs since '05, when you gag away a three-game division lead with three games left, you listen to everybody about anybody.
Come to think about it, what's so bad about the Bucs? New coach -- Raheem Morris. New tight end -- Kellen Winslow. Newly re-upped wide receivers -- Antonio Bryant (franchise-tagged) and Michael Clayton. And did we mention that Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall was arrested again?
"If they were in fact trying to trade Jay Cutler, then I think that's a situation that's going to cause a very serious problem for the organization," Cook huffed and puffed.
Why? Because Cutler's precious feelings were hurt? Please.
The nontrade causes serious problems only if Cutler wants it that way. To whine about the Broncos' kicking the tires on a trade accomplishes nothing. Especially from a guy with zero playoff appearances and a grand total of 37 NFL games.
Cutler has accomplished nothing in this league. He has pretty passing numbers, but so what? It's time for him to do a Brooks and grow up. It's time for him to spit out the pacifier.
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3 comments:
Couldnt have said it any better. Trade his sorry ass to detroit. Mathew Stafford is looking mighty fine right about now.
Even though it's hard to picture, especially considering his close-to-the-vest ways, Mike Shanahan is somewhere today probably laughing his ass off. The punch line: The Denver Broncos talked about trading Jay Cutler. Shanahan was fired as the coach of the Broncos after the 2008 season, replaced by Josh McDaniels, who came over from the New England Patriots.
Shanahan's undoing wasn't his coaching, but rather his personnel decisions. None of the bad ones he made -- and there were plenty -- could have topped the one the Broncos almost made over the weekend.
Is Matt Cassel strictly a one-hit wonder? (Getty Images)
How could they have actually considered trading Cutler?
Their target was reportedly Matt Cassel, who played for McDaniels in New England.
Did I miss the memo that stated one season makes an NFL star? What is all the fuss about Matt Cassel? I'm not saying he can't be an effective NFL quarterback, or a top-15 passer. But the talk that the Broncos were willing to trade away Jay Cutler in a three-way deal to get Cassel is just stupid.
Cutler or Cassel?
Please.
Last summer, Cassel was just hoping to make the New England roster, nearly being cut in favor of Matt Gutierrez. Now he's being talked in the same breath with Jay Cutler.
Has anybody really studied the two?
Cutler has a rocket. Cassel does not.
Cutler was a first-round pick for a reason. Cassel didn't even start at USC.
Yet the word got out Saturday that the Broncos were willing to part with Cutler to get Cassel. They would have worked a three-way deal to get Cassel with Tampa Bay. Instead, the Patriots traded Cassel to the Chiefs, along with linebacker Mike Vrabel, for a second-round pick.
Josh McDaniels got a mulligan. He should be thankful.
Cutler has started 37 games in his career, completing 62.5 percent of his passes. Last season he threw for 4,526 yards with 25 touchdown passes and 18 interceptions. He improved greatly last season in his second full one as a starter.
Poll
Who would you rather have at QB?
Jay Cutler
Matt Cassel
Cassel did well in his 15 starts for the Patriots last year, but anybody who followed him closely knows he's not the same type of talent as Cutler.
Why do you think he was almost cut?
Bill Belichick is arguably the best football mind in the business. Do you think he'd let a legitimate franchise passer go because of one bad summer of football?
Do you think he really would get fleeced by doing a favor for Scott Pioli by trading Cassel to the Chiefs?
Belichick wouldn't do a favor for his own family.
The Broncos are now putting it out that Cutler wasn't their only player that they talked about in trade talks.
That's called spin.
Coaches love their own guys, almost to a fault sometimes. There's comfort. They know the system. They know what to expect every day, in practice and in meetings.
That's why McDaniels wanted Cassel.
He was one of his guys. They probably got close in all those meeting rooms. Can't you see it? They were two young guys trying to make their way underneath the glare of the stars above them, Belichick and Tom Brady.
A relationship had to form. That's natural.
But to think that Cutler couldn't be that same kind of guy is naïve on the part of McDaniels. Cutler was good enough to play for Shanahan. The relationship between Cutler and the new staff will be fixed. He'll realize it's business.
But the foolishness of trying to trade him will linger for some time.
So go ahead and laugh, Shanny. The punch line is way too funny: Trade Jay Cutler to get Matt Cassel.
You don't get jokes much more laughable than that from those late-night talking heads.
You see, the Broncos are only 17-20 in games that Cutler has started. Oh, I get it.
How dare Jay Cutler not play good enough defense to help the Broncos win more games! Seriously, how much can you pin on the quarterback? Only the hapless Rams and Lions allowed more points than the Broncos defense last season. Only the Seahawks, Chiefs and Lions allowed more yardage. That was Cutler's fault. WHEN YOU POINT TO WIN-LOSS RECORD, YOU ARE INDIRECTLY ATTRIBUTING LOSSES TO THE QUARTRBACK. The same way as some quarterbacks in this league are being attributed wins (Look at Trent Dilfer's record when he played for the Ravens). If you don't want to take that leap, don't use the record as a barometer of how to judge the signal-caller. Your thoughts LPP???
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