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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler revealed on a Sept. 30 ESPN blog that he was nearly traded to the Washington Redskins in 2009 while he was still with the Denver Broncos.
Now it can be told — Jay Cutler almost became a Washington Redskin in 2009.
Cutler, now the starting quarterback of the Chicago Bears, said during his weekly show that he was almost traded to the Redskins when he was still with the Denver Broncos in 2009, per ESPN Chicago’s Michael C. Wright:
“Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler on Monday confirmed a recent report he was nearly a member of the Washington Redskins in 2009, shortly before a trade with the Denver Broncos brought him to his current team.
“In a piece explaining some of the behind-the-scenes maneuvers that ultimately led to the Bears landing Cutler, the quarterback — fueled by speculation about former head coach Josh McDaniels‘ preference of Matt Cassell, and the belief that former coach Mike Shanahan would be joining Washington — reportedly wanted to join the Redskins.
“‘There were a few teams we got calls about that it was kind of coming down to the wire,’ Cutler explained Monday during ESPN 1000’s ‘The Jay Cutler Show.’ ‘I thought Washington was a done deal.’
“Former Redskins vice president of football operations Vinny Cerrato thought so, too. In the CBS Sports report, Cerrato is quoted as saying, ‘Jay Cutler wanted to come…because he figured Shanahan was coming anyhow, and so he wanted to come, too. And for the agent (Bus Cook) and everybody, it would have been a very smooth transition.’
“Ultimately, it didn’t work out for the Redskins. The Bears snatched up Cutler with first-round picks in 2009 and 2010, a third-round pick in 2009, and former quarterback Kyle Orton, and received a fifth-round pick in the deal.
“‘Earlier in the day, I remember Bus calling and saying it was pretty close,’ Cutler recalled. ‘But I didn’t know Shanny was gonna go there at the time. Then, Bus called me back, I think at 3 (p.m.), (and he’s like), ‘It’s off the table. They couldn’t find a third team to complete the trade.’ Then, he called me back at 5 (p.m.), and was like, ‘Chicago. If you’re in with Chicago, we’re doing it.’ I’m like, ‘I’m all in, let’s go.’
“Cutler has been with the team since 2009, leading the Bears to the playoffs in 2010. Cutler signed a seven-year extension in January.”
Cutler also poured out his sentiments on his show in the aftermath of the Bears’ 38-17 Week 4 home loss to their NFC North division rivals, the Green Bay Packers, per a separate ESPN blog by Wright:
“Last week, Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers told fans to relax after his team’s 1-2 start, but Chicago’s Jay Cutler stutter stepped that approach and opted for reality on the heels of the Bears’ falling to 2-2 Sunday after a 38-17 loss to the Packers.
Aaron Rodgers says this signal IS a tribute to the @SmokinJayCutler meme: http://t.co/o8Go5FgWZ8 via @thebiglead pic.twitter.com/tlTYdH79XO— SB Nation (@SBNation) October 1, 2014
“‘I’m not gonna tell them anything,’ Cutler said Monday during the ‘Jay Cutler Show’ on ESPN 100. ‘We’ve got to win games at home. Green Bay, a divisional opponent…we’ve just got to play better. There is a lot of football left. (Rodgers) does have a point. It’s a long season. We’ve had a rough stretch.’
“After back-to-back victories on the road at San Francisco and against the New York Jets, the Bears returned to Soldier Field on Sunday for the first time since the opener. The Bears sprinted out of the gate and marched 80 yards on 15 plays to start the game, only to sputter down the stretch as a result of two turnovers, shoddy play in the secondary and a pass rush that barely made Rodgers flinch as he tossed four touchdown passes.
“Starting with a matchup Sunday at Carolina, the Bears play three of the next four on the road before their Nov. 2 bye. Cutler offered no assurances the club would bounce back. The club’s three upcoming road opponents (Carolina, Atlanta and New England) currently hold a combined record of 6-5.
“‘We’ve had a rough stretch,’ Cutler said. ‘We’re gonna go through a pretty rough stretch, like you guys were talking about earlier, the next four games. So we’ve just got to take it one game at a time.’
“The Bears rolled up 496 yards of offense and converted 64 percent of third downs. But a couple Cutler interceptions, combined with the defense’s allowing Rodgers to throw for 302 yards and a passer rating of 151.2, doomed Chicago’s prospects. In 28 pass attempts, Rodgers suffered only one sack, and Bears coach Marc Trestman said Monday that the club blitzed very little in the loss.”
Cutler has thrown for 24,943 yards, 165 touchdowns and 116 interceptions in 108 career regular-season games with the Broncos and Bears through Oct. 2, per ESPN stats.
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