Jay Cutler Exposed by Miami Dolphins’ Defense

An Oct. 19 article from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel explains why Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler played miserably in a 27-14 home loss to the Miami Dolphins last Sunday.

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler was exposed by the Miami Dolphins‘ defense in a 27-14 Bears home loss on Oct. 19. 

Cutler had an interception and two fumbles in that game. Dolphins safety Rashad Jones spoke with The South Florida Sun-Sentinel’s O/3/Kelly in its aftermath to explain how he and his teammates were able to get the better of the Chicago quarterback:

“Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has a reputation as a careless gunslinger, an unorthodox quarterback who can be forced into making mistakes. His NFL career testifies he’ll buckle under pressure, and take the bait if you set the trap.

“The Dolphins did just that for Cutler, who came into Sunday’s game against the Dolphins (3-3) with a 97.4 passer rating, which was a career-high, and exploited the quarterback’s reckless nature during Sunday’s convincing 27-14 victory over the Bears (3-4). 

“Miami’s defense knew if Cutler was put into an uncomfortable spot he’d revert to his old ways, and a 14-0 halftime lead provided the necessary ammunition.

“But Cutler showed his gambling ways early too, throwing deep on third-and-one, which happened in the first quarter when he chucked a pass downfield to Alshon Jeffrey, who was given a single safety high look with Brent Grimes in coverage.

Brian Urlacher: Only thing elite about Jay Cutler is his salary. #Bears http://t.co/dZN1kMnwbH pic.twitter.com/2VTTfb9mKX— Sun-Times Sports (@suntimes_sports) October 22, 2014

“Instead of trying to convert the first down, Cutler wasted an opportunity to enter Miami’s red zone by aiming for the red zone. 

“During the course of the game he’d also hold onto the ball too long in plenty instances, waiting for plays to develop. That happened a few times, presenting opportunities for Miami’s three sacks, one of which turned into a turnover. 

“The Dolphins knew Cutler often locked onto his favorite target, Brandon Marshall, forcing the ball into tight windows if the Bears were trailing by double-digits. And he did that plenty.

“‘After watching film all week we saw he was looking where he threw the ball. He was always looking at his receivers and never looking off,’ safety Rashad Jones said, referring to the second quarter interception he pulled down, which was returned 50 yards, setting up a 10-yard Mike Wallace touchdown. 

“Cutler was also credited for two fumbles (one came as the result of Ka’Deem Carey dropping a lateral). 

“The other fumble was forced and recovered by Cameron Wake on a fourth quarter sack that gave Miami the ball on Chicago’s 16-yard line. Kicker Caleb Sturgis transformed that turnover into a 33-yard field goal that gave Miami a 24-7 lead four plays later. 

“From that point Cutler went into a pass-happy frenzy, and completed 7 of his final 15 passes. One of which turned into the Bears’ third turnover, which cornerback Cortland Finnegan produced when he stripped tight end Dante Rosario after a 10-yard reception.

“‘One thing you know about Cutler is he’s going to try to make big plays. When your focus is doing that you’ll make an error,’ defensive end Olivier Vernon said. ‘He’s a phenomenal quarterback, but you can force him into making a mistake.’

“Cutler has turned the ball over multiple times in all four of Chicago’s losses this season.” 

For his part, Bears head coach Marc Trestman put to rest rumors of wide receiver Brandon Marshall ripping into Cutler after the Bears’ most recent loss to the Dolphins which dropped them to 0-3 at home this season, per ESPN Chicago’s Michael C. Wright:

“Chicago Bears coach Marc Trestman disputed the notion that receiver Brandon Marshall called out quarterback Jay Cutler during a few tense moments in the locker room on the heels of the club’s 27-14 loss Sunday to the Miami Dolphins, but also said ‘I didn’t hear all of it.’

“A source inside the locker room after the game said that some of Marshall’s diatribe was aimed at Cutler, who turned over the ball twice in the loss, leading to 10 points by the Dolphins.

“‘I don’t think that was the case at all yesterday,’ Trestman said. ‘I heard a lot most about it, but what I did hear I did not hear any of that.’

“Cutler threw an interception and was credited with two fumbles (one came as the result of Ka’Deem Carey dropping a lateral). In all four of the team’s losses this season, Cutler has turned over the ball multiple times. Yet in the team’s three victories, Cutler didn’t commit a turnover. Opponents have averaged 9.25 points off Cutler’s turnovers in each of the team’s losses.

“The disappointing loss led to Marshall’s impassioned postgame speech in the locker room, and a few pointed comments after the game.

“‘Same mistakes, same mistakes, same mistakes,’ Marshall said. ‘We’ve got to protect the football. We’ve got to protect the football. We’ve got to execute the game plan. We’ve got to adjust when things don’t go as we saw on the film. We’ve got Alshon Jeffrey, Martellus Bennett, Matt Forte. We’ve got a stud offensive line. We’ve got a great, great group of guys, and this is unacceptable. What did we put up, 14 points? Was it 14 points? That’s unacceptable.’

“Cutler passed for 190 yards and a touchdown, but was sacked three times and finished with a passer rating of 74.4. Marshall caught six passes for 48 yards on 10 targets.

“‘What I understood happened after the game were players expressing themselves in different ways, at their disappointment in the loss,’ Trestman said. ‘I’ll leave it at that. That’s really ultimately what happened, and I don’t think it’s anything more than that. In my experience, people get it out of their system. I’ve heard players express themselves dramatically in wins, too, that they were angry and we didn’t win right away or that we weren’t as good as we can be. It goes both ways. I’m not reading any more into it than that.'”  

Cutler has thrown for 25,803 yards, 169 touchdowns and 119 interceptions on an 85.3 passer rating in 111 career regular-season games with the Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears, per ESPN stats. 

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