Giving Up On Cutler? Spare Me the Drama

When it comes to following NFL football, we are all drama queens. Whether you sit in the Black Hole in the Oakland Coliseum dressed in a ridiculous and frightening costume cheering on the raiders or you have a Mike Greenberg-type physical appearance and watch football from your couch with your computer tracking your fantasy team, fans who follow NFL football go through ups and downs unlike any other sport. After all, with only one game played in an entire week, there's not much to do in the time between games except to think about your team's last game. The difference between winning and losing that game can result in polarizing highs and lows. Start the season 4 - 0 and fans are thinking super bowl. Drop two games in a row, and they are calling for the back up QB and the immediate firing of everyone having anything to do with the organization. Therefore, with the Chicago Bears' play in their last two games (and particularly the play of quarterback Jay Cutler), it's no surprise at all that some in the Chicago media as well as a good number of faithful fans have already determined that Jay Cutler is a bust. 

Looking over the last two weeks, it's understandable why bears fans are down on Cutler. In two losses against the 49ers and eagles, Cutler has been wretched: 5 interceptions against San Francisco, 3 over thrown passes that appeared to be sure touchdowns against the eagles, and a troubling pattern of either failing or neglecting to read defenses accurately. Some prominent media outlets in Chicago have reported that Cutler is broken, lost all confidence himself, and is now a "ruined" quarterback as a result of coming to the bears. 

It's fascinating how recency effects (a term used in psychology to describe "what have you done for me lately?") can make even the most knowledgeable fans and members of the media forget that it was just last year when Cutler was playing in the pro bowl as a member of  the Denver Broncos. And it's comical how some in the media have judged Cutler almost as much on his facial grimaces coming off the field after a series or in his post game interviews than they do for his actual play on the field. 

Even more ridiculous is how some bear fans and media have eased off their bashing of Cutler this week in response to Brett Favre's recent comments about the bears' mercurial quarterback. When asked this past week to compare the development of Jay Cutler to himself at the same age, Favre commented,

  "I think he's better. I do...I think at this stage (Cutler) is way more advanced. Physically he's got all the tools. But mentally he's way more advanced and able to see defenses and read things. I don't think it's a bad thing to want to put it all on your shoulders. And I know that's what he's thinking." 

It's not surprising that some bear fans may all of sudden feel better about the future of Jay Cutler given Favre's recent analysis. However, it wasn't that long ago that Favre made similar statements of praise toward another bears quarterback - Rex Grossman. Anything Brett Favre says out in public to media members holding microphones in front of his face needs to be seriously questioned, as Favre's credibility for saying what he means is shaky at best. Favre's history over the last two years of going back and forth in the media on retiring and playing can be described as anything ranging from wishy-washy to manipulative, from dramatic (remember - we are all drama queens) to outright deceitful. 

Instead of judging Cutler based on what Favre says about him, bears fans should think about Cutler more on what Favre has done on the field throughout his career. Consider Favre's dramatic turn-around in play over the last year, coming from the New York Jets to the Minnesota Vikings. A year older, Favre is a vastly improved quarterback with the vikings, leading the NFL in QB rating through last week. Last year with the jets he finished 21st in the league in QB rating. While a healing shoulder injury is one reason that Favre has played better this year, he has certainly benefited from playing on a superior overall offensive team (in comparison to the jets of a year ago). An opposite trend in production for Cutler (coming from the broncos last year as a pro bowler to the bears this year) could be at least partially explained by a significant down grade in offensive talent for the bears - particularly at the offensive line and wide receiver positions. Additionally, when thinking about Cutler, bear fans may also want to check out Brett Favre's statistics in his early years in the NFL. In his first three years in the league, Favre threw for 37 touchdowns and 39 interceptions. Cutler, during his first three years with the broncos, threw 54 touchdown passes with 37 interceptions. 

So in summary, what does all this mean?

-When it comes to following NFL football, we are all drama queens

-Don't judge a player in the NFL, particularly a young quarterback, based on only a couple of games in his first season with a new team

-Don't listen to anything Brett Favre says, but do pay attention to what he does and has done on the field throughout his career

The following source contributed to this post:

http://ucla.scout.com/a.z?s=12&p=2&c=923711

For Cub Fans, Joe Girardi Is The Manager Who Got Away

Lou Brock, Dennis Eckersley, Greg Maddux... For cub fans, the pattern is all too familiar. Players who somehow got away from the cubs only to go on to do great things with other teams. Former cub Joe Girardi is one of those players who got away, went on to do great things with the yankees, then came back to the cubs, then got away again. While Girardi fits this pattern as a player, he may eventually be remembered more by cub fans as the manager who got away. 

Growing up in Peoria, IL, Girardi dreamed of playing for the cubs one day. A great athlete in high school playing football and baseball, Girardi attended Northwestern University where he played baseball as a catcher. His dream came true in 1986 when he was drafted by the cubs. After a couple of years in the minors, Girardi was playing for the cubs in the late 80's and helping them win a divisional championship in 1989. Girardi played with the cubs until 1992, went on to play for the Colorado Rockies via the expansion draft of 1993, and then the yankees, where he helped lead the team to 3 world series championships (1996, 1998, 1999). Girardi came back for a second stint with the cubs in 2000 where he made the all-star team (his only appearance as a player). He played for the cubs for several more seasons before ending his career with the cardinals in 2003. 

As a player, Girardi seemed destined to play for the cubs. His managing career could have easily included some time with the cubs too....if only the cubs hadn't let him get away. After the 2005 season, Girardi, who had spent the season as a bench coach with the yankees, was named manager of the Florida Marlins, replacing great cub killer Jack McKeon (architect of the 1984 San Diego padres, and field manager of the 2003 Marlins). Before being hired by the marlins, Girardi had talked in the Chicago media about his dream of eventually one day managing the cubs. During the off-season of 2005, the cubs certainly could have considered hiring Girardi. Dusty Baker was still under contract as the cubs manager, but quickly losing favor with both management and fans after another disappointing season--2 years removed from their near trip to the world series (falling to those pesky marlins), and 1 year removed from the team's disastrous collapse in the final week of the  2004  season. However, the cubs elected to stay with Baker, and Girardi went on to manage the marlins in 2006. 

By August of the 2006 season, the cubs were on their way to a last place finish in the National League Central while the upstart Marlins under the leadership of Joe Girardi were fighting for the NL wild card (despite having the lowest team payroll in all of baseball). Girardi made national headlines at the end of the season when video footage showed him getting into a vocal argument with marlins owner Jeffrey Loria during a game. Loria was heckling the home plate umpire, and Girardi argued with him to stop. The incident eventually resulted in Loria firing Girardi at the end of the season, despite Girardi winning the national league manager of the year award. 

That off-season, the cubs decided to part ways with Dusty Baker. At the time, it would have been perfect timing and made perfect sense for the cubs to hire Joe Girardi as their next manager. And cubs general manager Jim Hendry did interview Girardi as part of his search. But at the time,  it's safe to assume that Hendry was a bit leery of hiring Girardi in the wake of the shouting incident with Jeffrey Loria. Additionally, Hendry was looking to reel in a big name with lots of managerial experience. In the end, Lou Piniella was hired as as their next manager. 

After falling short of the cubs top job, Girardi was interviewed by other teams. He received offers to manage other clubs, including the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles, but respectfully declined each offer. He spent some time working for the yankees broadcast network and was eventually named as yankee manager, replacing legend Joe Torre. 

The rest is history. In his second year managing the yankees, Girardi led the team to it's 27th world series title. Some baseball experts will attribute the team's championship to a staggering team payroll featuring great players like CC Sabathia, Mark Texiera, etc. But Girardi was instrumental in leading this team throughout the season. He took some big risks in the post season, such as going with his starting pitchers on limited rest and throwing future hall of famer Mariano Rivera out in 2 inning save opportunities in multiple games. These moves, criticized by some in the national media, ended up working out pretty well for the yankees. And while the roster of talent on this team put together by general manager Brian Cashman was impressive, people in Chicago can understand that working with the likes of former cubs/whitsox Chad Gaudin, Nick Swisher, and Jerry Hairston Jr. is no guarantee of a world series title. 

Looking back on the last three years, it now seems like the cubs once again let Girardi get away--this time as a manager. While Lou Piniella was a good hire and did a great job managing the team to consecutive division titles in 2007 and 2008, his post season moves along with his lethargy and player coddling during the 2009 season suggest that sweet Lou is on the decline. Three years ago, some people in baseball thought Girardi was too intense on young players and in his dealings with upper management after getting into that infamous argument with Jeffrey Loria. But three years later it's clear that Girardi is a skilled and steady field manager, a calculated risk taker, and grace under the pressure cooler that is New York. 

While Girardi has experienced a great deal of success wearing yankee pin stripes as a player and now manager, it's clear that his heart is and will always be with the cubs. Maybe circumstances in the future will some day work out for Girardi to eventually manage the cubs. He's only gotten away from them now four times.