Comparing Cutler, Cassel trades

[mayoclinic]

You can't compare them because Cutler didn't come with a $15M bill.

That's right. Cutler is under contract at a very fair price, and while the Bears will doubtless renegotiate him to a long-term deal they can do so in a cap-friendly way and on their terms. Cassel had a $14+M cap hit and no long term contract. Apples and oranges.

In terms of talent and ability, no way is there that big a difference between them. I'd personally take Cassel over Cutler any day - he'll probably rack up less yards but be better in every other respect.

 

[OhExaulted1]

agreed - cassel's franchise tag plus his inability to throw a good long ball scared buyers away.

He threw some nice deep balls last year and is faster and tougher both mentally and physically than Cutler. 25 TDs and 4500 yds sound great, until you see his 18 INT's. They finished 8-8 in spite of him, not because of him. He's nowhere near the leader Cassell will be in KC and Matt protects the ball way better.

I'll take short passes, ball control and move the chains over the gunslinger approach. Add onto that maturity and I'd take Matt over Kuntler anyday. He's a prima-donna and Josh was smart to get rid of him.

 

[Frezo]

I agree with those who have argued that this is an "apples and oranges" comparison, given the different cap hits.

That said, it's hard to understand how this trade makes sense for the Bears; they've given up a serviceable but not noteworthy NFL QB, two first round picks and a third rounder for a QB who has good stats but who hasn't proven he can win and who appears to have some "issues." There was either a competing deal on the table or the Bears are desperate to get back to the SB while they still have the core of the team that got them there two years ago. There's only one outcome that can justify a move like this to an ownership and a fanbase: one or two shiny Lombardi's.

It was all about money for the Bears which is something they don't like to spend. Cutler still has I think 3 years on a contract that is very $$$ friendly. The Bears don't have to pay 2 1st round picks and their fans are absolutely ecstatic. Not to mention they got a pro bowl QB out of it. The Bears made a good business move.

 

[Patriotic Fervor]

The reaction was weird but a talent like that is rare, I think the vast majority of NFL people would take Cutler over Cassel. How will Cutler do with those WR, that's uncertain.

Cutler has a strong arm. After 3 years, and a dubious college career, we're waiting to see what else, if anything, he has.

We know he's learned how to shoot his way out of town, should he want to, and while he may consider that valuable information to possess, were I an owner or a GM, I'd really think hard and fast about the kid.

If Denver drafts very well on defense this year (unlike McDaniels' predecessor), they'll be alright. There are lots of teams with "franchise quarterbacks" who have never gone anywhere. On the other hand, Baltimore won a Super Bowl with Trent Dilfer, and Chicago once won a championship with Billy Wade at quarterback.

I'm sure the Broncos and their fans have already moved on....

 

[fair catch fryar]

IMO when these two are compared in a few years it will look like KC got a hell of a deal and the Bears got "jobbed".

 

[The_Riddler]

He threw some nice deep balls last year and is faster and tougher both mentally and physically than Cutler. 25 TDs and 4500 yds sound great, until you see his 18 INT's. They finished 8-8 in spite of him, not because of him. He's nowhere near the leader Cassell will be in KC and Matt protects the ball way better.

I'll take short passes, ball control and move the chains over the gunslinger approach. Add onto that maturity and I'd take Matt over Kuntler anyday. He's a prima-donna and Josh was smart to get rid of him.

You also forgot to mention Matt's mobility and what he can do with his feet blows away what Cutler can give you. Matt's a better decision maker and ball manager. When it's all said and done. Matt will have the better career.

 

[PatsFanSince74]

It was all about money for the Bears which is something they don't like to spend. Cutler still has I think 3 years on a contract that is very $$$ friendly. The Bears don't have to pay 2 1st round picks and their fans are absolutely ecstatic. Not to mention they got a pro bowl QB out of it. The Bears made a good business move.

Well, neither of us knows how this will turn out. My money is on this turning out better for Denver, you're placing your bet the other way.

The fact that the a team doesn't have to pay two first rounders is in itself a neutral statement and more of a comment on a team's ability to draft wisely than anything else--think 1998...Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf. As for their fans being ecstatic, that will change in a heartbeat if there isn't any new bling in the Bears' Trophy case two years from now.

 

[JoeSixPat]

People forget - Cassel had the ability to hold up a trade with any team that would only have him on the condition of working a long term deal along with an equitable trade with the Pats.

There's no telling how long that would taken... it's possible both Cassel and Peppers could be in the same situation if Belichick hadn't taken the opportunity to trade Cassel to what might be the one team out there willing to accept Cassel as part of a 1 year deal.

Just the fact that the Chiefs are skeptical about Cassel enough NOT to feel the need to sign him to a long term deal should be enough to tell anyone that Cassel's value wasn't anywhere near that of Cutler's.

So is a 2nd round pick for a player on a one year deal fair? I'd say so.

 

[Real World]

We got 60 cents on the dollar if we were lucky, and Denver just made out like a bandit. Two 1sts, a 3rd, and a starting caliber (mediocre I think) QB for a guy who is a diarea for brains pre-madonna, with a "golden" arm, but rocks in his head. Cutler is pretty good, and who knows, he may some day be great, but wow, Denver hosed the Bears good.

 

[Frezo]

Well, neither of us knows how this will turn out. My money is on this turning out better for Denver, you're placing your bet the other way.

No I'm not. The Bears upgraded their QB position, but at too high of a cost. It's a good business move by them because they save a lot of money and will easily sell out. Let's call it the "Ralph Wilson" plan. I don't see it as a great football move.

The fact that the a team doesn't have to pay two first rounders is in itself a neutral statement and more of a comment on a team's ability to draft wisely than anything else--think 1998...Peyton Manning and Ryan Leaf. As for their fans being ecstatic, that will change in a heartbeat if there isn't any new bling in the Bears' Trophy case two years from now.

That's in two years. For all anybody knows the NFL could be in the middle of a lock out. The Bears appear to be in survival mode and are just looking at the next year or two. This kind of stuff makes it all the better to be a Pats fan.

 

[eom]

I think I'd rather have the pats than the broncos or bears.

 

[JoeSixPat]

We got 60 cents on the dollar if we were lucky, and Denver just made out like a bandit.

Just wondering how many players on a one year contract you'd trade two first round picks and a third for....

If it were me, I'd only be willing to give up that much for a player with say, three years left on his contract and I might even want to extend that player to a longer term contract.

Cassel, meanwhile, is so highly coveted by the team that wanted him, that they're willing to take a wait and see approach on his one year contract.

Thus, they gave up just a 2nd round pick for a player on a one year contract that they still have questions about. I'd say that's a pretty good deal for the Patriots, all things considered.

 

[Lord_Reginald_III]

OK . . . how do you feel about it?

bitter. kinda bitter.

 

[DisgruntledTunaFan]

Meh - keep in mind, Belichick was dealing with his former colleague mastermind...who knew the Pats org inside and out, how they tick, plus, of course, he IS one of the masters in this league.

Don't expect Pioli to sell himself out to any potential Herschel Walker crap stuff.

 

[tanked_as_usual]

wtf is chicago thinking????

 

[psychoPat]

We should just be glad that it was the Bears and not the Jets.

If the Jets had gotten Cutler
that would require them to have outbid the Bears.

I rather think i'd prefer the Jersey Jets to have Cutler ...
and do without
2 firsts, a third, a mediocre QB.
and still more.

 

[patsfaninpittsburgh]

We both scored.

The Pats have the #34 pick obtained via trade for a guy that hadn't started since high school and who would have been cut by 90% of this board in pre-season.

The Broncos dumped a 17-20 loser (really 16-21) for 2 first round picks and a 3rd.

New football definitions:

Pro Bowl QB- a QB that is 1st or 2nd in the league in interceptions and lead their teams to historic end of year collapses.

Franchise QB- A guy who would be a hall of famer if games were won by passing yards. Ofcourse, the fact that the guy leads an offense 16th in scoring is immaterial.
Afterall, what does points have to do with wins?

Football Pundits- Guys who are hired for their football opinions. They are only qualified if they can't comprehend that a guy who coached and developed Tom Brady might be as much if not more qualified to evaluate QB talent for HIS system.

Historic Stats- Stats achieved passing by a QB "with no running game". These can only be determined by "football pundits" because they can't contemplate that no running game forces a team to throw more and that might inflate passing stats just a 'lil.

Loser- Jay Cutler because well, he lost more games than he won and lost them at the end of the season when the season was on the line.

Don't ask football pundits to define. They will conclude the exact opposite.

 

[DisgruntledTunaFan]

wtf is chicago thinking????

Giving up picks like this is SO UN-Jerry Angelo like.

Getting a gunslinging QB is SO UN-Lovie "I Play Dungy Ball" Smith like.

To boot - they needed an MLB/FS to (eventually)replace ageing Urlacher/Brown with that #1.

 

[BradyFTW!]

Hmmmmm, lemme think.


I'd rather have twos 1sts and a 3rd than just a 2nd.

I think that that's exactly the kind of substanceless analysis of the situation that can be expected from the average fan. There's a reason why Belichick is the best in the league, though. Could he have got more for Cassel by holding out? Sure, but he doesn't look at moves in a vacuum like that.

This was always about how to improve the Patriots as much as possible over the course of the offseason, and that meant that Cassel's cap hit could not hold the team hostage. That meant dealing him as quickly as possible, so that we could get on with signing the other guys that we needed to sign.

Sure, Denver got someone to overpay for Cutler. On the other hand, the entire organization has been a sideshow for well over a month, there has been a huge distraction/sideshow, and the damage to McDaniels' and Xanders' authority might be permanent. The Broncos are going to absolutely suck next year, in large part because they had a bad team and were too busy doing damage control on a situation that was up in the air to make the improvements that the team needed.

To Xanders' and McDaniels' credit, they made out like bandits in a bad situation, but that doesn't make the Cutler situation even *remotely* comparable to Cassel's. We set out with a fundamentally different objective, with different things that we needed to accomplish (we're trying to win a SB this year), and couldn't afford for this to become a sideshow. Not to mention that, leaguewide, Cutler is generally regarded as a better player than Cassel, with substantially more potential to evolve into an alltime great (not saying that I agree, but it is a factor).

 

[tanked_as_usual]

the broncos are a really bad football team right now..........the draft picks they have aren't going to help them soon enough for mcdaniel to keep his job.........

no QB
no RB

champ bailey is the only corner who would make the pats, their dumervil and williams is it in the front 7

maybe 2 wins.......maybe

the broncos were lucky to get what they got.....the team wasn't going anywhere anyway