The Jay Cutler Options For The Chicago Bears
By Erik Lambert
What can the Chicago Bears do with Jay Cutler in 2015? Here is a rundown of their possible scenarios, good, bad and ugly.
Keep Him
Painful as the 2014 season has been, the reality is that the fault for the losses can’t all be directed on one player, even if Cutler is the quarterback and gets paid the most money. The Bears defense was absolutely terrible for the second year in a row and having that knowledge often forced him to try doing too much, often leading to turnovers. By keeping him around another year, the team can then put their full focus in free agency and the NFL draft towards rebuilding the defense, hopefully with better coaching and management in charge along the way.
Cut Him
Probably the cleanest solution for the Chicago Bears is simply cutting him in 2015. It doesn’t create any messy problems on the roster and doesn’t involve dealing with other teams. However, it will bring up a considerable money issue. The Bears will owe Cutler $15.5 million next year, regardless if they cut him or he’s on the roster. One key to remember is he’ll be guaranteed another $10 million at March 13th when the new league year begins. So if the team does decide to send him packing, it will be before that. The money and salary cap hits will be tough, but the good news is the hit will be reduced by whatever deal he signs elsewhere.
For example, if he were to sign a contract for $6 million with another team, the Bears would only owe him $9.5 million in guarantees. So there is a silver lining.
Trade Him
The tricky part with trading him comes down to money. Cutler is still owed a lot in guarantees at around $25 million. So the Bears would need to find a team willing enough to absorb that hit in return for his value as an experienced veteran who has shown he can win games with less than ideal circumstances. There are teams such as Tennessee and the Jets who have the cap space and the need at quarterback to swing such a deal.
However there are recent reports that Bears might actually have to give up a draft pick in order to make somebody willingly take Cutler in a deal. It is very hard to envision the team doing. They already have just six picks in the coming draft and a lot of problems to fix on their roster. Such a deal would be hampering those efforts even further.