Bills should scuttle thoughts of Cutler

By Anthony Bialy  |   Thursday, March 19, 2009  |  Comments( 77 )

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Jay Cutler can play fairly well, but can he also act pleasantly? The Denver Broncos quarterback is demanding a trade, but the Buffalo Bills should know better than to obtain a promising yet crabby player. Swapping out current quarterback Trent Edwards for Cutler might not even be that much of an upgrade when one considers the circumstances both have faced; on top of that, Cutler’s spat with his current team is a bad omen for his next employer.

Despite statistical appearances, the move wouldn’t be that much of an improvement. Cutler’s numbers last year were largely better than Edwards’, but he got them with a better offense. The still-current Bronco threw for far more yards, 4,526, in 2008 than Edwards, who got to 2,699 in a season partially lost to injury. But Cutler got lots of what Edwards didn’t, namely receiving help.

For one, Brandon Marshall totaled 1,265 receiving yards for the Broncos; also, he was notably not the team’s only contributing wideout. In addition, rookie Eddie Royal got 980 yards; by comparison, Bills rookie receiver James Hardy accumulated less than 10 percent of that total with 87 yards. Lee Evans, who again stood basically on his own, is patient enough that he should have an Old Testament book named after him.

Each team’s relative passing strength in 2008 is reflected by the number of times each quarterback tried to pass. Cutler’s 616 attempts dwarfed the 377 made by Edwards, even factoring the aforementioned action the latter missed. Accordingly, the players gained nearly the same amount each throw despite the raw yardage difference: The 7.3 yards Cutler gained per attempt last year is just barely ahead of Edwards’ 7.2. Similarly, the 86.0 rating Cutler managed looks nearly indistinguishable from the 85.4 Edwards posted.

Buffalo shouldn’t be hurriedly searching for an upgrade; after all, its current option has performed fairly well for a fairly underperforming offense. The Bills would be far better served by working with Edwards to improve his occasionally errant tendencies. Meanwhile, the team should hope Terrell Owens’ talent outshines his unique personal style; if the effusive player is able to put forth his typical performance between snaps and whistles, it would allow Edwards to beef up his numbers. Most importantly, the Stanford man is still only two seasons into his career, not to mention that he’s shown enough aptitude in his short time to have earned the chance to continue maturing.

And the case against Cutler extends beyond the fact that young Broncos fan Stan Marsh -- he of "South Park" fame -- thinks the quarterback kind of sucks. The Bills have already taken on Owens; do they really want a complainer throwing to an agitator? It’s a connection they don’t need.

It’s unfortunate if the source of Cutler’s insolence was truly the team’s rumored interest in Matt Cassel. Any quarterback not named Manning must realize that teams are constantly looking to upgrade. It’s an indifferent business process, but Cutler is treating the personnel speculation personally. Does he think he’s special? It’s not like Edwards is flipping out because people are musing whether Cutler would be an improvement.

If a quarterback can’t handle being the subject of replacement rumors, he can’t be counted upon to last a season without an outburst. The Bills shouldn’t be making contact with a player who thinks he’s untouchable.
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CommentsComments: 77  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
bflobob8		09:06 AM
03/19/2009
I knew you could do it AB! Finally a non T.O. article for the most part. Cutler is a non issue and makes no real sense for the...
No.2
Fletch		09:31 AM
03/19/2009
Cutler makes a good bit of sense for the Bills, but Ralphy Boy is up Trent Blaine Edward's butt, so it will never happen. Good...
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No.3
8and8Forever		09:50 AM
03/19/2009
letting Crowell go is so Bills. yet ANOTHER bill gets to the end of his rookie contract and gets the heck out of "Losertown...
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