Cutler -- the intangibles

[Hulamau]

Oke heres the deal ... Cutler has simply got what it takes ... and with his surrounding talent and coaches ... skies the limit.

Of COURSE he is still going to be a bit raw and make a few boneheads from time to time ... He is still, for all practical purposes, a senior rookie and there is simply no substitute for live NFL gameday action for any QB to learn which way is up and screw up an ample number of times to figure out what he can and cant get away with, or make happen.

But in every area when looking at young QBs ... at this stage of his development through six games ... particularly those rare assets you cant coach ...he definitely is a cut above ...

And this was the first game of the season when usually all but the most seasoned vets are shaking off rust ... He still has plenty to learn that he can ONLY get through the school of hard knocks, but he has every tangible and intangible quality one could ask for in a true franchise QB with ***'SPECIAL*** written all over him!

Anyone remember Elway's first year? I do .... But the fact simply is, Cutler showed the kind of uncoachable qualities of true poise under ridiculous pressure on that last drive on the road in crappy weather and a hostile crowd (Cleveland anyone) and even after making a typical rookie FUBAR, as well as showing steel-eyed competitiveness combined with his Rocket arm ... all of which will likely bring great things for us for years to come.

He will be improving big time throughout the year and yet without doubt will also deliver both screw ups as well as greatness in every game for a while ... so get used to it.

But the fact also is, that with this defense as it continues to come together in the next weeks and with his supporting cast on Offense, we should have a good chance to win .. if not dominate .. most of the games on our schedule.. even through his growing pains this year.

Anyone expecting perfection from JC at this point is dreaming so keeping a little perspective will make it a hell of a lot easier to really take in ... in real time ... what is unfolding before us with this kid, and appreciate the difference between just being a talented QB, and having the whole nine intangible yards that Cutler seems clearly to have.

I'm not taking about stats, or screw ups either ... forget those ... look at how he plays the game when it counts ... that is what separates the guy that give you a real shot to win each and every week and more typical QBs that may put up yards and still lose the ones that are there for the taking.

That last drive was silly good ... the way he handled the whole thing ... and I'm just glad Jake wasn't back there under the same duress and having to dig himself out from under the same set backs (we saw how often he was able to do that) and having to thread those needles to win. But I liked Jake too he was a good guy and a competitor ... just cursed with a lousy arm ... so no more about Jake from me ... I wish him well whatever he's doing ... we've got brighter horizons ahead.

Even after he nearly lateraled the game away to Young, Cutler immediately gets in the huddle and tells the guys "everything will be fine" and then wills it to happen. ..Best Bronco draft pick since 1983!

[maher_tyler]

good post!!

[That One Guy]

I still say the receivers made him look a lot better than he was yesterday. I saw INSANE catches yesterday and consistently throwing the ball behind your receivers as hard as you can possibly throw it is a bad combination. We saw it last year when Scheff was tipping balls to himself for TDs and what not... and this year guys like Marshall are snagging balls out of the air with their finger tips... this guy is getting some really lucky breaks.

[Broncomutt]

I still say the receivers made him look a lot better than he was yesterday.


QFT. I saw him throw the ball hard, that's about it. Other than that, he consistently threw behind the recievers, threw off his back foot, and demonstrated complete lack in understanding when to throw the ball away and when to take a sack.

I know he's young, rusty and playing his guts out. I pray he settles down a bit. I think he will, but it's not definite.

On the positive side, I was really amazed at our recievers!

[Binkythefrog]

I also think on that stupid lateral, Selvin Young showed good poise.

He knows its 2nd down during the last drive, and I think a lot of rookies would of tried to pick it up and run with it, potentially fumbling more and letting Buffalo recover.

It was a smart move just to knock it out of bounds so that the Broncos would have another change. With Young's play there, Cutler would of looked liked any ordinary rookie.

[no-pseudo-fan]

Cutler was not perfect. Elam was not perfect. Javon was not perpect. When It was on the line, they all did what was necessary to win, and that was special. Cutler will get better, Javon is going to have a monster year.

[JCMElway]

Hula, excellent breakdown. And while it's true that Cutler was throwing behind the receivers, I think that's something that will be improved over the course of the season. I'm not in slightest worried about that. It was, after all, only his SIXTH pro game ever. To have that poise and leadership to win in Buffalo is really special. At least he got the balls into catchable areas. How often could Jake do that?

Shanny and Dinger definetly know how to work with a QB, so I know leading the receivers is going to be something they'll be working on in practice. Barring injury, we're all going to see Cut's accuracy increase quite a bit come November and December.

[Smiling Assassin27]

I've held off as long as i can. He reminds me of elway in his first year. Elway's passes were rockets but often slightly off target. His lateral is akin to Elway's lining up over guard and his poise on the final drive was something that no qb since elway could've done for this team.

And while we're on the topic of nostalgia, didn't our first red zone trip seem like a trip back to 1984 with Dan Reeves calling 3 running plays and kicking a fg? WTF was that? I understand that shanny wants to make a statement that we can run it anywhere and anytime against anyone, but crap, we've got 3 quarters and 15 more games to do that.

[SoDak Bronco]

Nice post...I can't be more pumped about the poise and precision Cutler showed on that last drive. I look forward to him continuing to get better each week...

[55CrushEm]

I still say the receivers made him look a lot better than he was yesterday. I saw INSANE catches yesterday and consistently throwing the ball behind your receivers as hard as you can possibly throw it is a bad combination. We saw it last year when Scheff was tipping balls to himself for TDs and what not... and this year guys like Marshall are snagging balls out of the air with their finger tips... this guy is getting some really lucky breaks.

I disagree a bit. Oftentimes, a QB has to throw what appears to be a pass behind a receiver.....when he is putting it in the one spot that will prevent the 2 defenders from getting it, or to prevent his WR from getting killed by the defender running across from the other side.

I'm not saying that was the case with all of his "apparent inaccuracies"....but that is in fact often the case.

IMO, it's not necessarily the accuracy of the throw that was off....but the TIMING of the throw. I.e. if he throws the ball a split second sooner, when the receiver is a step or 2 earlier in his route....then it would look like a perfect pass.

[SonOfLe-loLang]

QFT. I saw him throw the ball hard, that's about it. Other than that, he consistently threw behind the recievers, threw off his back foot, and demonstrated complete lack in understanding when to throw the ball away and when to take a sack.

I know he's young, rusty and playing his guts out. I pray he settles down a bit. I think he will, but it's not definite.

On the positive side, I was really amazed at our recievers!

I think this is being way hard on Cutler. It's not like he completed 30 percent of his passes. He showed signs of brilliance and some rookie mistakes. But he pulled off a game on the road in the last drive, and that shows his ability to lead and make it work when it counts.

Also, regarding the original post, the Broncos didn't draft Elway. So unless the draft pick youre referring to was Chris Hinton or Gatry Kubiak, im not sure what youre talking about:)

[lostknight]

The question is how well does Cutler learn? Let's face it, Cutler had almost as bad of a game as Plummer would have every now and then. Now, unlike Plummer who would have thrown a pick the last series in that 3rd and 23 he recovered, and you could see the wheels turning when he did take a sack later in the game.

So does he learn not to throw off the back leg, and when to take a sack? The jury is still out on that one. There is no question Cutler's mechanics were off this game. Look for improvement.

I think it will happen, but only time will tell. And 307 yards passing and 100+ yards russhing by Henry means that the offense is doing a aweful lot right, and a few things wrong.