And even though Jay says he’s not a savior for the franchise (and I agree with him), I think a lot of Bears fans are looking to him as exactly that. Yesterday, I referred to him as the team’s first franchise quarterback since Jim McMahon, so I was probably laying that on him as well. But that wouldn’t be fair:

“I don’t see myself as that (savior) at all. In this league I’ve learned over the past three years it takes offense, defense, special teams and it takes great coaching. If you don’t have all four of those, you’re not going to go very far. Expectations are high everywhere in this league. Obviously in this town they’re going to be a little bit higher because of the fans and how much they cherish the Bears. But it’s going to take everyone in the locker room and everyone upstairs to get it done.”

The Bears have to be thrilled with the tremendous upgrade at the most important position on their team. And even though Orlando Pace isn’t a long term solution, it will be an improvement to have him protecting Jay’s blind side. Nevertheless, it will, indeed, take a team effort to get the Bears back to playing championship football. All things considered, it’s easy to get excited about Chicago Bears football right now. And in my opinion, they are the team to beat in the NFC North. Detroit should show signs of improvement (how could they get any worse?), but the Minnesota Vikings and Green Bay Packers could be stagnating or stepping backwards in 2009.

Source: ChicagoBears.com, Photo: Newscom

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Chicago Bears Welcome Jay Cutler

This deal was surprising in that all signs were pointing toward a trade to the Washington Redskins until the Bears stepped in and made the deal worth Denver’s while. Chicago GM Jerry Angelo was understandably excited and pleased about the acquisition. And he could’ve cared less about Jay’s recent reputation for being “difficult” to deal with:

“We felt that he’s a very good person, a good leader. He had some things that happened in Denver. We recognize those, but we treated them as just speed-bumps, part of the growing process. He’s highly competitive, he’s highly emotional. That just comes with the territory.”

Even though they gave up a lot to get Jay, the Bears now have their first “franchise quarterback” since Sid Luckman. OK, I’m kidding. But you can go back as far as the Jim McMahon era to find one and that was over 20 years ago. That’s right, it’s been a running joke around the NFL (and especially in the NFC North) about the number of quarterbacks who have started for the Chicago Bears since 1986. I mean, they had four different starting quarterbacks in 2004 alone. Even when the Bears went to Super Bowl XLI just three seasons ago, it was almost in spite of their starting QB Rex Grossman. Put Jay Cutler on that particular team and I think they beat the Indianapolis Colts.

It was a happy day at Halas Hall. And one Bears fans might remember forever.

Source: ChicagoBears.com, Photo: Newscom

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Broncos Trade Jay Cutler to Bears

Blogcasting the National Football League, Blogcasting the NFL

Chicago Bears RB Cedric Benson was released by the team today following two recent alcohol-related arrests. About five weeks ago, Cedric was charged with boating while intoxicated and resisting arrest following a random safety check on his boat on Lake Travis in Austin, TX. He was then charged with driving while intoxicated after failing a field sobriety test this past Saturday, also in Austin. I’m not surprised with the decision to waive Cedric. In a news release I received from the Bears Media Relations Department, GM Jerry Angelo made this statement:

“Cedric displayed a pattern of behavior we will not tolerate. As I said this past weekend, you have to protect your job. Everyone in this organization is held accountable for their actions. When individual priorities overshadow team goals, we suffer the consequences as a team. Those who fail to understand the importance of ‘team’ will not play for the Chicago Bears.”

It’s the right move for the Bears, but just like any other player who makes bad decisions and suffers through difficult times, I am hopeful Cedric will — first and foremost — get his life together and secondly, be able to return to the game. I spent some time with Cedric before the 2005 NFL Draft and all I can say is he seemed uncomfortable with the media attention and really acted like he would rather be somewhere else. I can’t say that I blame him, but there are certain things an NFL player has to deal with and talking with the media is one of them. You might as well embrace the job or you’re in for a painful existence in the National Football League — especially if you are a high-profile player. And Cedric was just that, being selected by the Bears with the 4th overall pick in ‘05. The best of his three seasons was last year when he rushed for a mere 674 yards in 11 games. He played in 35 regular season games with 12 starts. So as it turns out, Cedric Benson never lived up to the expectations of the Chicago Bears on- or off-the-field.

Source: ChicagoBears.com

Post from: Every Morning Quarterback

Chicago Bears Release Cedric Benson