So Jay Cutler goes 5/10 for 64 yards and an interception in the Bears first pre-season game against the Bills and Bears fans aren’t thrilled. The next week he goes 8/13 for 121 yards with a touchdown pass and a 12-yard scramble and all of a sudden the city goes gaga. Apparently all it takes is three successful drives during the pre-season for the media to decide Cutler’s worth $100 million. No joke.
Manning is one of the highest-paid players in the game, but if you were to choose between him and Cutler in the Bears’ 17-3 victory Saturday, the decision would have been a no-brainer.
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The Bears are going to have to give Cutler a $100 million deal at some point within the next two years, and he looked Saturday as though he’ll be worth every dollar. Of course, the Bears like to tell people not to overreact to preseason results, so maybe they will dismiss his success against the Giants as they did his slow start in the preseason opener against the Buffalo Bills.
Look, I understand why Bears fans and even the media are pretty excited to have this guy in town. 10 years with the likes of Moses Moreno, Shane Matthews, Kordell Stewart, and Rex Grossman will make you desperate for a real quarterback and appreciate one when you have it. But … let’s not get so giddy that we’re jumping to conclusions. First off, I don’t think you would find many people who agree that Eli was worth $100 million. Second of all … this was one half of one pre-season game against a team that didn’t have half of its defensive starters playing! Get hyped, get happy, get excited for the Bears’ prospects this season. But to take three drives in a pre-season game and conclude the guy is a $100 million quarterback is asinine. Then again, these same people will be calling for a benching as soon as he throws his usual two picks in the fourth quarter of an important game.
