NFL What-Ifs: Jay Cutler Delivers A Good Season

Dec 4, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) in their game against the Dallas Cowboys at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

This might just be the most loaded question of any in the entire NFL heading into the 2015 season. One could argue that no quarterback has been criticized, ridiculed, dissected and placed under the microscope more than Jay Cutler.

For years experts have said he’s probably the most physically gifted thrower of the football in the league. He’s big, strong, athletic, mobile and has constantly flashed a competitiveness and clutch mentality elite quarterbacks are supposed to have. What has fans so frustrated with him is he has no consistency whatsoever. For every great game he has, he posts an equally atrocious one filled with bad interceptions and a clear lack of poise under pressure.

"I don't think Jay Cutler is concerned about anything.. and that's a part of the problem." - @ProFootballTalk #Bears QB competition
— PFT Live (@PFT_Live) March 27, 2015

That is why nobody would’ve been surprised had new Chicago Bears GM Ryan Pace and head coach John Fox pulled the plug and sent him packing. In the end, money and lack of replacement options made that too difficult. It hasn’t changed the feeling among most that the two will jump at the first opportunity that opens up.

So this raises a question. What happens if Cutler answers the bell and has a good season?

Answer: Saves his job for the 2016 season

Pace and Fox are not dummies. They are familiar with the term “lame duck” season. It refers to when a coach or player responds to the possibility of losing his job by having a great year, and then when they are given a contract extension or told the job is theirs long-term, they sink right back to their old habits.

So Bears fans are terrified that Cutler will do just that, lure the new guys into a false sense of hope like all the others and then get them fired too. If he plays well in 2015 it will only mean he can stay in place for 2016. In fact, there are some reasons to believe that’s not such a bad thing.

Here is his stat sheet from last season:

4,003 total yards
30 touchdowns
66.0% passes completed
18 interceptions

Note that he did this in 15 games and had to play a chunk of the season with his head coach and offensive coordinator clearly against him in the locker room. Yes, the turnovers remain a problem but all the other numbers represented the best of his Bears career. He’s 32-years old, settled down with a family and by accounts is finally working with an offensive coordinator he himself has expressed a desire for in Adam Gase.

Don’t forget that one of the hardest things to do in pro football is find even a serviceable quarterback, let alone a great one. For his gun slinging ways, Cutler is still a big reason they win a lot of games every year.

Besides Pace has a bigger problem at present, which is having the oldest roster in the NFL. It’s not a stretch to think keeping Jay around for 2016 might provide needed stability and give him some critical extra time to continue overhauling the depth chart with young talent.

Beyond that? No promises.

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