Cutler already cutting it at QB

[SoCalBronco]

denver broncos
Cutler already cutting it at QB
BRONCOS ROOKIE PASSES FIRST TEST
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer




Jay Cutler, the 11th pick in the draft last month, is putting the Broncos' playbook into action this week. (Post / Cyrus McCrimmon)


Not to get carried away with the biggest star of the Broncos' future, but on his first day on the job, Jay Cutler threw spirals.

Gorgeously tight, accurate, rotating spheres. Cutler threw spirals to receivers running from his right and more spirals to pass catchers running patterns from his left. Spirals on a humpbacked rope at a catchable speed.

Can the Super Bowl be far behind?

"I went with him a few times early in practice and I thought he threw the ball pretty good," Broncos wide receiver Todd Devoe said. "He's got a nice arm. His ball was on time. It's early, so you can't tell too much, but it seems like he's caught the flow of things."

But wait. There's more. The Broncos conducted their first on-field offseason workout Tuesday at their Dove Valley headquarters with Cutler transferring plays he had been memorizing to the huddle.

Even for a Vanderbilt product, the terminology of the Broncos' offense can seem like molecular physics.

"Going out on the field, getting him to break out of the huddle with the snap count and the called play - it's not easy," coach Mike Shanahan said. "To come in here and use different terminology on the first day with called plays, it puts a lot of pressure on the guy."

For now, spirals and huddle presence are all there is to go on. The Broncos allow the media to watch the first 10 minutes of their offseason workouts before lowering the shades. Cutler looked great in the passing warm- ups. But then again, so did starting quarterback Jake Plummer, backup Bradlee Van Pelt and free-agent signee Preston Parsons.

"We had already seen a lot of tape so you know a lot about these guys before they come in," Shanahan said. "But you know once a guy goes through his first day that he can make all the throws, and he did a very good job calling plays. It was a good first day for him."

Team policy does not permit rookies to be interviewed until Friday.

Plummer is about to begin his fourth season as the Broncos' starting quarterback, but make no mistake, all eyes will be on Cutler through the




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preseason. A four-year starter from the Southeastern Conference, Cutler is only the second quarterback drafted in the first round by the Broncos and the first since Tommy Maddox in 1992.
Introduced to the Denver-area media after his first-round selection last month, Cutler joined his new teammates on the practice field for the first time Tuesday. He showed up with a haircut straight out of a mid-1960s yearbook and an arm that attracted notice from a field away.

"In kind of a vet move, I was peeking over there and I saw him make some nice throws," safety John Lynch said.

What can the Broncos expect from Cutler in 2006? Anything from Carson Palmer to Ben Roethlisberger. Palmer was the league's No. 1 draft pick in 2003 but didn't play a down for the Cincinnati Bengals until his second season. Roethlisberger was the No. 11 selection in 2004, but was rushed into replacing the injured Maddox in the second game of his rookie year. Big Ben won his first 15 regular-season starts, a streak that extended into his second season in 2005.

Cutler may hope that as a rookie he has more in common with Roethlisberger than just their 11th overall draft status. The Broncos may hope Cutler's rookie season mirrors Palmer's - Rod Smith said as much two weeks ago - because that means Plummer is healthy and productive.

Either way, Cutler is here. And everybody's watching.

"He's kind of quiet," running back Ron Dayne said. "I haven't heard him speak too much."

Join the club.

Staff writer Mike Klis can be reached at 303-820-5440 or mklis@denverpost.com.

http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_3830373

[Kaylore]

"He's kind of quiet," running back Ron Dayne said. "I haven't heard him speak too much."

Join the club.

Good. He's a rookie. Put up and shut up.

[brncs_fan]

Originally Posted by SoCalBronco

denver broncos
Cutler already cutting it at QB
BRONCOS ROOKIE PASSES FIRST TEST
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer




Jay Cutler, the 11th pick in the draft last month, is putting the Broncos' playbook into action this week. (Post / Cyrus McCrimmon)


Not to get carried away with the biggest star of the Broncos' future, but on his first day on the job, Jay Cutler threw spirals.

Gorgeously tight, accurate, rotating spheres. Cutler threw spirals to receivers running from his right and more spirals to pass catchers running patterns from his left. Spirals on a humpbacked rope at a catchable speed.

Can the Super Bowl be far behind?

"I went with him a few times early in practice and I thought he threw the ball pretty good," Broncos wide receiver Todd Devoe said. "He's got a nice arm. His ball was on time. It's early, so you can't tell too much, but it seems like he's caught the flow of things."

But wait. There's more. The Broncos conducted their first on-field offseason workout Tuesday at their Dove Valley headquarters with Cutler transferring plays he had been memorizing to the huddle.

Even for a Vanderbilt product, the terminology of the Broncos' offense can seem like molecular physics.

"Going out on the field, getting him to break out of the huddle with the snap count and the called play - it's not easy," coach Mike Shanahan said. "To come in here and use different terminology on the first day with called plays, it puts a lot of pressure on the guy."

For now, spirals and huddle presence are all there is to go on. The Broncos allow the media to watch the first 10 minutes of their offseason workouts before lowering the shades. Cutler looked great in the passing warm- ups. But then again, so did starting quarterback Jake Plummer, backup Bradlee Van Pelt and free-agent signee Preston Parsons.

"We had already seen a lot of tape so you know a lot about these guys before they come in," Shanahan said. "But you know once a guy goes through his first day that he can make all the throws, and he did a very good job calling plays. It was a good first day for him."

Team policy does not permit rookies to be interviewed until Friday.

Plummer is about to begin his fourth season as the Broncos' starting quarterback, but make no mistake, all eyes will be on Cutler through the




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Advertisement


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preseason. A four-year starter from the Southeastern Conference, Cutler is only the second quarterback drafted in the first round by the Broncos and the first since Tommy Maddox in 1992.
Introduced to the Denver-area media after his first-round selection last month, Cutler joined his new teammates on the practice field for the first time Tuesday. He showed up with a haircut straight out of a mid-1960s yearbook and an arm that attracted notice from a field away.

"In kind of a vet move, I was peeking over there and I saw him make some nice throws," safety John Lynch said.

What can the Broncos expect from Cutler in 2006? Anything from Carson Palmer to Ben Roethlisberger. Palmer was the league's No. 1 draft pick in 2003 but didn't play a down for the Cincinnati Bengals until his second season. Roethlisberger was the No. 11 selection in 2004, but was rushed into replacing the injured Maddox in the second game of his rookie year. Big Ben won his first 15 regular-season starts, a streak that extended into his second season in 2005.

Cutler may hope that as a rookie he has more in common with Roethlisberger than just their 11th overall draft status. The Broncos may hope Cutler's rookie season mirrors Palmer's - Rod Smith said as much two weeks ago - because that means Plummer is healthy and productive.

Either way, Cutler is here. And everybody's watching.

"He's kind of quiet," running back Ron Dayne said. "I haven't heard him speak too much."

Join the club.

Staff writer Mike Klis can be reached at 303-820-5440 or mklis@denverpost.com.

http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_3830373

I am just glad that we don't place an enormous amount of pressure on our QB's from the very beginning.

[Kaylore]

Originally Posted by brncs_fan

I am just glad that we don't place an enormous amount of pressure on our QB's from the very beginning.

What the staff doesn't put on them, the fans more than make up for.

[footstepsfrom#27]

He threw spirals eh? That's a relief...

Maybe we can wait on the hype till he plays a preseason game against future insurance salesmen and bar tenders?

[Taco John]

This is going to be the most fun preseason exhibition series since, geez... Who knows when...

[OrangeShadow]

I cant wait for preseason.

[Pezman]

I wait with baited breath for the national media hacks to begin their "replace Jake" starting in week 2 of the preseason.

Lets just hope we dont put huge expectations on this kid right out of the gate or its gonna be a long road for Cutler. Last thing he needs is a bunch of media types pressuring him every week with their questions regarding the transistion.

[broncohaven]

I heard he's already got the starting spot locked up.

[footstepsfrom#27]

"Sources" inside the Bronco braintrust today said that Jay Cutler has already called signals in just his 2nd practice. According to the source...

It's tough on a young guy to actually remember what signals to call straight out of the box like that. Elway couldn't even do that...he started off using "one potato, two potato, three potato, four" at first but Jay even stood up and waved his arms around a bit like Peyton Manning and he got the "hut...hut"..."hut"...part down pretty fast. You just don't see that from most of these young kids coming out. In the afternoon he varied his cadence too...using "hut hut...hut" instead...so we're really pleased with the way he's developing. Tomorrow we're going to work on coming off the field after a punt and walking and chewing gum at the same time. It's a bit ahead of schedule but we think he's got the mental capacity to advance quicker than most

[Mile High Shack]

Originally Posted by Pezman

I wait with baited breath for the national media hacks to begin their "replace Jake" starting in week 2 of the preseason.

Lets just hope we dont put huge expectations on this kid right out of the gate or its gonna be a long road for Cutler. Last thing he needs is a bunch of media types pressuring him every week with their questions regarding the transistion.

you know the minute Jake throws ONE int, the media and Jake haters will be on the dump Jake, start the future now bandwagon

[Bob's your Information Minister]

Originally Posted by Taco John

This is going to be the most fun preseason exhibition series since, geez... Who knows when...

Just wait until I start simul-tracking the preseason stats of Croyle and Cutler...

[Mile High Shack]

Originally Posted by Bob's your Information Minister

Just wait until I start simul-tracking the preseason stats of Croyle and Cutler...

while rolling your battle dice

[Rock Chalk]

Originally Posted by Pezman

I wait with baited breath for the national media hacks to begin their "replace Jake" starting in week 2 of the preseason.

Lets just hope we dont put huge expectations on this kid right out of the gate or its gonna be a long road for Cutler. Last thing he needs is a bunch of media types pressuring him every week with their questions regarding the transistion.

Dont you mean homegrown OrangeMane hacks?

[Bob's your Information Minister]

Originally Posted by Mile High Shack

while rolling your battle dice

Croyle dons his +20 knee brace of strength

[Bronco_Beerslug]

Cutler already cutting it at QB

Alright, let's get Jay in there and get some experience right away.

[ro_50]

The hype has begun by the media.

[12th man]

That was a good article. Im glad he is doing well. I can't wait for preseason to watch this guy play.

[Arkansas Bronco]

The way I see these QB's is that Leinart will be a slightly above average qb maybey a good (not great) QB. Cutler has a good chance to be a star or a good qb but he does have a bit more bust chance then leinart. Young well he might prove me wrong but I still think he has the biggest bust chance and I dont see his arm as good as Cuts and i want to see how he handles an NFL playbook.

[12th man]

Originally Posted by Arkansas_Bronco

The way I see these QB's is that Leinart will be a slightly above average qb maybey a good (not great) QB. Cutler has a good chance to be a star or a good qb but he does have a bit more bust chance then leinart. Young well he might prove me wrong but I still think he has the biggest bust chance and I dont see his arm as good as Cuts and i want to see how he handles an NFL playbook.

All three of these qb, I think, are going to be stars. Before the draft I would say Leinart would just be decent, but now he is in Arizona with good wr's, and a coach that is great at the passing game. Young I think is going to be a star anyway just cause of his skill, and him working with norm chow and jeff fisher. Cutler is going to be the best though when it's his turn to step up to the plate. He has a genius of a coach, a great arm, and mobile. a perfect denver qb.

[Bronco_Beerslug]

.

[ro_50]

Originally Posted by 12th man

All three of these qb, I think, are going to be stars. Before the draft I would say Leinart would just be decent, but now he is in Arizona with good wr's, and a coach that is great at the passing game. Young I think is going to be a star anyway just cause of his skill, and him working with norm chow and jeff fisher. Cutler is going to be the best though when it's his turn to step up to the plate. He has a genius of a coach, a great arm, and mobile. a perfect denver qb.

I think for once when you see rookie quarterbacks, all three are stepping in ideal situations where they dont have to come in and play right away, like a David Carr or Alex Smith.

Well, I think Young could have the best chance to play right away, it all depends on the Steve McNair situation.

[MechanicalBull]

Originally Posted by Mile High Shack

while rolling your battle dice

and I must say Bob took it well and had a good comeback. I actually like Croyle and would've liked to see him do good except he was drafted by the Chiefs.

I love the press Cutler is getting but let's give the kid a break he just started his professional career and wait to see what he does on the field. I won't be suprised to see Salisbury and Golic have a "Cutler Countdown" to when he starts if Jake should turn the ball over a couple times. I fully supported Plummer all 3 yrs and I'm not backing out yet I think he keeps on improving and to be honest I don't see Shanahan playing Cutler all that much this upcoming season barring an injury to Plummer.

[Crushaholic]

I would HOPE he could throw a good ball right now. Wait until he gets into a situation where people on the other team are actually trying to get after him. That will be the real test...

[ludo21]

Im glad he can throw a spiral!

Must be overtaking Jake anyday now.