Denver's pouty passer, Jay Cutler.I'll follow up on this later, but I just read something that got my Denver dander up a little bit. It will sound pretty good to Chiefs fans, though. In an ESPN Insider piece, an irate Mel Kiper Jr. says that new Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel is better than sulking Broncos QB Jay Cutler. Um, say again?
This is an issue because at the time that the Chiefs acquired Cassell, the Broncos were reportedly close to landing Tom Brady's 2008 replacement in a three-way deal that would have landed Cutler in Tampa Bay. Cutler has been pouting ever since, while new Denver coach Josh McDaniels -- another disciple of The Patriots Way -- has gone into spin control. He really doesn't have any choice at this point. Cassel is in Kansas City, for one season at least, and it's too late for Denver to find another starting-caliber quarterback.
As a Broncos fan, I was glad that the deal didn't go through. Count me among those that feel like Cutler is going to be a top-five signal-caller and a perennial Pro Bowler. I'm not sold on the fact that Cassel is any better than Tyler Thigpen, much less Cutler. However, according to Kiper, Cassel would have been an upgrade for the Broncos. He's pretty adamant about that fact. His argument is entirely that he's always thought of Cutler as being overrated. He didn't say anything about why Cassel is better.
There is no dout that Cutler has some serious growing up to do. However, the quarterback metrics at FootballOutsiders.com had Cutler as the seventh-best passer in the league last season. Cassel was No. 20 and Thigpen No. 30. This despite the fact that Cutler threw too many interceptions, 18 of them to be exact. But Cutler threw for more than 4,500 yards. Cutler is also a year younger than Cassel.
For me, it's a no-brainer. There is no way that, all things being equal, I would trade Jay Cutler for Matt Cassel. That the Broncos were apparently thinking of doing so has me severely concerned about the direction of the franchise. What about you, Chiefs fans? Who would you rather have?
As a Chiefs fan, I much prefer the Broncos having Cutler. More than just being a whiny, choking frontrunner, he can't even handle jawing with the bible thumping Phillip Rivers. If he was traded to the Bucs, I'd get much less schadenfreude when the Donkeys lose.
Now, if it was Cutler vs. Cassel for the Chiefs, it's hard to say. At this moment in time, Cutler is easily the better passer. However, you have to worry -- if Chris Mortensen makes up a rumor that you were going to trade him, and he will at some point, will he throw a large public fit? How does a locker room react to his nonsense? Given that they're both young, and Cassel has only had one season on the field, I think it's almost a wash in the long term. You know Cutler can throw, and you suspect Cassel might be able to; you know that Cutler is going to whine and be a distraction, and you know that Cassel won't. Toss-up.
PS: Kiper is the definition of overpaid, big-mouthed douchebag. He gets air time because he's inflammatory, not because he's right. I trust his "evaluation" of talent about as much as I trust the "evaluation" of the loud guy at a sports bar.