The rumors were (and still are) swirling about whether Jay Cutler was going to still be the Chicago Bears’ quarterback in 2015 with (another) new coaching staff coming in. Cutler to the Tennessee Titans. Cutler to the New York Jets. Cutler to somewhere.
“We’re in Nashville quite a bit so you hear a lot about it,” Cutler said on Tuesday after the first minicamp practice under coach John Fox and offensive coordinator Adam Gase. “I think now, from January to April, there is so much time and there are so many rumors, you can’t keep them straight from week to another. You’ve just got to avoid it and ignore it and if it happens, it happens.”
Beginning his 10th NFL season, Cutler has seen enough to know that he well could have been done in Chicago.
“Yeah, you never know,” Cutler conceded on Tuesday at the start of the team’s first minicamp. “You never know how it’s going to go, especially with a new GM, new coaches, a whole different philosophy maybe; a whole different way that they want players to play.
“Who knows? You never know what’s gong to happen. All the interactions I’ve had have been positive.”
[NBC SHOP: Buy a Jay Cutler jersey here!]
Those interactions include settling in with his fifth offensive coordinator in the span of seven NFL seasons. If nothing else, Cutler should have the orientation process pretty well mastered.
NFL
“Is it five?” Cutler said, suppressing a smile. “That can’t be good.”
With each preceding offensive staff – Ron Turner, Mike Martz, Mike Tice, Aaron Kromer – Cutler was at least publicly upbeat at this point of every offseason. In this case, the track record of Fox and Gase weighs in their favor.
“I feel like I’ve felt [positive] with a lot of them,” Cutler said. “I really have a lot of respect for Adam and the staff he put together. Fox has a reputation, he knows how to win.
“They have a blueprint. I think it’s a very talented team at this point and we’re only going to add to it. I’m excited about where we’re going and the future. We’re just trying every day to work and get better.”