Sunday, Jan. 16, 2011
6:37 PM
By Jim Miller
CSNChicago.com
Ok, I cannot get ahead of myself for next Sunday's historic game against the Green Bay Packers just yet. But the football Gods couldn't have scripted it any better.
First, let's take a look at how Jay Cutler performed in his first postseason game. Going into the game, I thought it was important for Jay to check his emotions. All Bears fans have witnessed Jay get flustered after a bad play with a scowl or pump his fist like today after a huge touchdown toss.
In my experiences whether I was playing in a playoff game or just on the sidelines, you get pretty amped! When I started for the Bears versus Philadelphia back in the 2001 playoffs, I constantly had to calm myself down all week during preparation. It was a good thing because you want to do well, but as the quarterback, everyone is looking to you for leadership and you have to display that confidence and belief into your team. Getting too stoked up for the game can be a bad thing if you do not control it and your teammates sense it.
Jay handled it beautifully as he was locked and loaded into the game plan throughout his playoff debut. Cutler walks away from the Seattle game with two rushing touchdowns (46 rush yards), two passing TDs (274 passing yards), and achieving a QB rating of 111.3.
Only the legendary Otto Graham has performed at such a level in a Divisional playoff game, and I might remind you that Otto won 10 NFL Championships before the Super Bowl ever came into existence. You could argue Otto is the greatest to ever play the position. Jay's in very good company.
Jay was great from the start, hitting Greg Olsen for a 58-yard TD on the third play from scrimmage. He identified Safety Lawyer Milloy was way too close to the line of scrimmage and could make Seattle pay for such a mistake. Man Free coverage proved to be the wrong coverage and a mismatch Jay exposed early to Seattle.
Jay was also very good all day in diagnosing blitzes. Early in the game, Jay had a strong-side play action called but was worried Seattle was about to blitz from the weak side. He did not panic! It was textbook how Jay backed out from center his first two steps then switched mid drop to a traditional drop back and aborted the fake simultaneously. That is terrific, heady football by Jay knowing and ensuring exactly what he was seeing. Very nicely done!
NFL
What I was most impressed with today is that Jay acknowledged the Bears still left a lot of offense on the field. I may remind you that the Bears rang up Seattle to the tune of 437 yards, but Jay is correct in his postgame assessment. He knows he missed some throws and understands he has to be even better in the Bears' bid to represent the NFC in Super Bowl XLV.
It is imperative Jay does not chase ghosts in his preparation for the Packers. Week 17 brought a lot of different fronts, looks and blitzes from Green Bay that resulted in six sacks. The Bears and Jay must dictate to the Packers what they are going to do offensively, not what blitzes Green Bay is going to do defensively. The fewer the protections, the better, for the Bears offensive line.
Jay needs to put the onus on himself to throw "hot" when needed. This will ensure he controls the punishment he takes during the game, minimizing unnecessary shots. Mike Martz will also have to be on point with play calling. Since the Bears do not have audibles, Martz will have to be special calling run plays, screens and draws away from the blitz and ultimately slow down Clay Matthews and Company.
I can't wait, it's going to be epic!
Jim Miller, an 11-year former NFL quarterback, is a Comcast SportsNet Bears analyst who can be seen each week on U.S. Cellular Bears Postgame Live. Miller, who spent five seasons with the Bears, analyzes current Chicago QB Jay Cutler in his "15 on 6" blog on CSNChicago.com and can be followed on Twitter @15miller.