Well that's not packers bias. Objectively speaking you can't really rank Cutler much higher than middle of the pack.

If I was Phil Emery I would not bring Cutler back.

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So this week you are saying the Bears should not bring back the 16th best QB in the NFL, but two weeks ago you were saying that Brett Farve could come into the league and be a viable option at starting QB?

If QB play is as bad as you claim, where you are advocating that Farve could come back and start, why would any team let a QB walk who is in the top half of the league?

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I think Favre could still play. I don't think it would be a good idea to sign him.

If Cutler was willing to accept the fact that he is a mediocre QB and be paid accordingly, I would do it. It doesn't sound like that's an option though.

_________________
Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

Tuffy Rhodes was also leading MLB in homers for a while in 1994.

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I respect your argument, BRick, and I know we've gone back and forth on it in a different thread. I'm not saying the Bears should keep Cutler and eschew drafting a QB because the latter is unpredictable, but I will say that holding on to Cutler and drafting a QB is a better option than going into 2014 with a rookie as the starting QB.

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Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

I think you go all in one way or the other. That may work for Christian Ponder or Sam Bradford, but Cutler is a known quantity.

The fact that virtually everyone is unwilling to state they want to keep him for another 3 years is answer enough for a QB with his experience.

If we are to believe that Trestman is a strong offensive mind I would hope he could at least do as well as offensive genius Rex Ryan has with a rookie QB.

With or without Cutler, I see trouble coming for the Bears after this year. It may already be here.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

When you say they could be in "trouble," I was hoping you'd make a finer distinction: are they in trouble all over the place, or on just one side of the ball? For me, it's obvious the trouble is on defense, while they have something promising going on with the offense.

Cutler may not like having what is essentially his potential replacement as a teammate, but too bad. I think it's in the Bears' interest to keep Cutler for a year while drafting a QB. Assuming Cutler returns and plays decent for the rest of the season, why not go into next year with Cutler as a starter, and knowing exactly what he can do, and seeing where that takes you? If it becomes clear that things are not going well that season, then you drop him Schaub-style and go with the rookie. Of course the best case scenario is that Cutler is the Alex Smith to the hypothetical rookie's Colin Kaepernick. The best problem to have is a competent QB on whom you can rely, and a talented backup ready to take over if the older guy gets injured or falters.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

They are in trouble as a team. They have a few younger pieces to build around on offense but there are just too many bad drafts in a row to expect it to be sustainable. The Bears have stayed competitive by getting a lot of production from players that are either gone or on the way out or declining. I think you are a little bit too optimistic about the offense. It has some pieces to build around but so does pretty much every team but the Jaguars.

How much of a difference can Cutler really make? It's been pretty much established that Cutler needs a lot of talent around him to be a difference maker.

I'd rather see what a rookie QB can do which is now the norm in the NFL. I'm concerned if they franchise Cutler, that we'll have a situation where we have a coach entering his third year, and a GM entering his fourth year, and THEN we finally accept a rebuild with a new quarterback when Cutler isn't brought back after next year. Get moving going forward. The Bears aren't winning the Super Bowl this year or next year and any rationalization of "any team can win it any year" doesn't really change that thought since that means it is just as likely that they do with or without Cutler.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I think tonight answers this question for me. I do not ever think that is should be considered to make McCown the starter etc. But if he does well in this new offense it would show me someone other than Cutler and cheaper can do this with Tresmann.

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Well I think they have more than just pieces to build around; they have a system in which young players like Jeffery, Mills, and Long have excelled, and when you add Forte, Bennet, and Marshall to the mix, you've got something that can be promising over the next 2-3 years.

I don't think franchising Cutler while drafting a QB means you delay an inevitable rebuilding phase. I don't even think a rebuilding of the offense is necessary. If they draft well next year, you could absolutely ask throw that rookie QB into the mix with the current offensive core and expect that they do well.

_________________
Successful calls:

Kyrie Irving will never win anything as a team's alpha: check
T.rubisky is a bust: check
Ben Simmons is a liability: check
The Fields Cult is dumb: double check

2013 CSFMB ROY

Jesus really favrefan? Favre can't still play. He couldn't still play 3 years ago.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014