Fantasy Football Crystal Ball: Jay Cutler

After a breakout year in 2007, Jay Cutler entered last season with the Denver Broncos surrounded by some big expectations. It appeared the Broncos had finally found their franchise quarterback in Cutler and last season reiterated that thought. In fact, they were confirmed in the first game when Cutler threw for 300 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions in helping lead the Broncos to a 41-14 dismantling of the Oakland Raiders on Monday Night Football.

Traditionally, Denver has been a strong running team, but the running backs position was a trauma ward in 2008, putting even more pressure on Cutler and the passing game to perform well. Cutler and the rest of the offense was up to the challenge as the young quarterback finished the season with 4,526 passing yards, 25 touchdowns and 18 interceptions while completing 62.3 percent of his passes.

In another example of Cutler’s growth, he took just 11 sacks, compared with 27 the season before, showing that he had increased his pocket awareness and presence. Unfortunately the passing prowess did not translate to a successful season for Denver. After starting 4-1 the Broncos lost seven of their next 11 games to finish 8-8 and miss out on the playoffs. And, this is when things started to get interesting.

The off-season was a tumultuous one in Denver. Unsatisfied with the team’s performance, team owner Pat Bowlen fired head coach Mike Shanahan, who led the Broncos to two Super Bowl wins, and replaced him with former New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. It wasn’t too long before reports started to surface that McDaniels was attempting to trade for Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel, a player McDaniels had helped develop, to start in place of Cutler. Upon hearing the news Cutler became upset and demanded a trade. After months of back-and-forth from both sides Cutler was finally traded to the Chicago Bears for quarterback Kyle Orton and draft picks.

So Cutler got his wish, was traded to a new team and is now a Chicago Bear. There is a lot to evaluate here and this article takes it piece by piece.