Nov 9, 2014; Green Bay, WI, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) reacts in the second quarter during the game against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
Every year a draft often encounters intriguing scenarios that highlight the future of a franchise based on a single decision. The 2015 NFL draft may have one already.
Chicago Bears facing serious questions on Cutler
It involves the Chicago Bears and their developing situation regarding quarterback Jay Cutler. At the start of the 2014 season, the team elected to hand him a $126 million contract with $54 million guaranteed in hopes he could finally settle into an offensive system and become the quarterback Chicago fans have been waiting five years for.
What they got instead was the same old two-faced Jay. While Cutler boasts the highest quarterback rating of his career at 92.8, he also still has shook off the same problem that have plagued him for years. He gets sacked with alarming regularity (23 in nine games), and he is appallingly careless with the football. With 10 interceptions and five lost fumbles (out of 10 fumbles total) he leads the NFL in turnover and that is the one stat that is a primary explanation for why the Bears are 3-6 and looking at their worst finish in a decade.
Without question this has drawn the ire of Chicago fans who are calling for the heads of everybody in the organization from GM Phil Emery, to head coach Marc Trestman and especially Cutler himself. A rather interesting side effect of it all is the great debatable topic of the day:
Would the Bears dare select a quarterback in the 1st round of the 2015 NFL draft?
They are certainly in line to have a top 10 pick, which grants them the opportunity to get one of the best in the class including a Marcus Mariota or a Jameis Winston. It would certainly be a gamble. Chicago has a lot of defensive issues to fix and every pick counts. Still, the potential benefits are hard to ignore. Cutler would get real competition for the first time in his career, which will either make him play better or make him fold. At which point the team has the insurance to move on.
Everything comes down to what happens when the season ends. If Trestman and Emery survive, that is a far different scenario than if the team cleans house and starts with a new regime. Either way, the chances of the Chicago Bears going quarterback is something draft pundits will argue over for months to come.