Apparently Broncos QB, Jay Cutler, has put his house in Denver up for sale.
Is this a sign that an imminent change is on the horizon? Probably not.
Although it blew up in McDaniels’ face, dealing Cutler for Cassel would have been the only move that made sense because Cassel is not a rookie and at least of some body of work to measure against. There are as many, if not more rookie QBs that don’t pan out as there are that do; see Alex Smith, Vince Young, JP Losman, Matt Leinart, etc.
It’s obvious why McDaniels wanted Cassel having coached him and the familiarity factor, but I think the Chiefs are in for a rude awakening when they find out that he’s not their long term answer at QB. That is of course unless Randy Moss, Wes Welker, and the Patriots system were involved in the trade too…
So as things stand now, Denver’s got a pissed off QB on its hands and is looking for ways to deal with the situation.
I can understand Cutler’s frustration and think it would have been prudent for the Bronco’s front office to have informed the team when McDaniels was hired that no player’s job was safe, or something of that nature. Thus, their franchise QB wouldn’t have felt like McDaniels had just committed an act treachery.
But Cutler needs to move past this. The bottom line is he’s a young, emerging player at the QB position who’s a gun slinger that relies on his arm too much, and this gets him into problems.
And if there’s one thing we know about New England, and the system McDaniels was groomed in, is they want someone who is smart with the ball and doesn’t turn it over. Brady gave this to them in 2001 and then once they realized what they had on their hands, they unleashed his potential in 2003 and he’s been the best in the NFL since.
But back to the for sale sign on his house for the moment.
With Shanahan gone, and the likelihood of him re-signing in 2012 about as good as the American Auto Industry making a comeback in its current form, he probably figures there’s no need to keep a home in Denver when he’s got a few more years at most in area.
Will it happen sooner? It could, but again, the odds are low. The realities of the NFL are such that you can’t win without a starting QB. The Lions have tried it for years and we see how that’s played out.
The seasons that Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco enjoyed in ’08 might provide hope, but if you’re a stats guy and playing percentages, dealing a proven QB for a rookie will nine times out of 10 likely blow up in your face.
Kind of like pissing off your most recognizable player by dangling him as trade bait.
Lawrence Martin
March 17th, 2009 at 01:22
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The only deal that makes sense is Cutler straight up for Eli Manning. Think about it Cutler has a canon of a arm which would serve him well in Giants stadium and Gilbride would have a guy for the pass happy offense he really wants to run. The Broncos would get a guy who manages a game well and the mile high air should help his average arm. This trade would help both teams……. a perfect win-win.
Mr. 49er
March 17th, 2009 at 11:30
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If that trade were to happen, the Giants would need to throw in a 2nd round pick, otherwise the Broncos would be getting ripped off. Speaking of Elisha in mile high stadium, have you ever seen a duck fly so high above sea level?
NYGFan#1
March 17th, 2009 at 19:08
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Lawrence, you’re probably the type of fan who would wear a jersey proudly when things are going well and tear it off when things are going poorly! Cutler has a cannon for an arm but lacks the intangibles that Manning possesses. The team who should be considering a trade for Cutler is the 49ers, but aside from Patrick Willis, they have no one of trade value to make that deal go through.
Mr. 49er
March 18th, 2009 at 19:02
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NYGFan#1, it’s funny, because even if you had used the name Tom, or Elisha, I still would have known you were a giant fan because you are a moron. Eli has the intangibles? What would that be? Losing your #1 receiver down the stretch, morphing into a terrible offense, and losing 4 of 5 to end the season? But you are right in that Cutler has a canon for an arm. Eli, not quite so. Watching from that beatdown issued by Philly in the playoffs, you could see all those redneck giant fans itching to pull out their shotguns to blast all of those ducks (and believe me, there were a lot!). Rumor has it that after the game, McNabb walked over to Elisha and said “Mans game b*tch!” As for the 49ers, we would never trade for your systems quarterback. We already have a small handed, weak armed QB, and are not looking to add another one.