There's been a lot of slander surrounding Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler ever since star wide receiver Brandon Marshall called him out after the team's loss to the Miami Dolphins last week.
Former Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher has hopped on the Cutler slandering bandwagon, saying that the only thing elite about the quarterback is that the salary he's getting paid, which is on tier with the other top-level QBs in the NFL.
"Financially, he is one of the elite guys in the NFL. ... He just hasn't produced like an elite quarterback," Urlacher said in an interview with 87.7 FM The Game.
Cutler signed a seven-year, $126.7 million contract this offseason, and he is getting paid $22.5 million for this season. For 2014, his salary is ahead of the likes of New York Giants' Eli Manning and even Denver Broncos' Peyton Manning.
"You look at the Bradys, the Mannings, the Rodgers, the Brees, those guys win every year, even with no one around them," Urlacher said. "Rodgers has no offensive line. He wins. [Tom] Brady has no receivers. He wins.
"And you look at Jay. He's got Brandon [Marshall], Alshon [Jeffery], Matt [Forte], this great offensive line, Martellus Bennett, and they can't seem to put it together, for some reason. I'm not sure if that's his fault, but for some reason, they just can't figure it out."
Cutler's stats aren't that bad when you look at it. In fact, the 31-year-old is on pace for his best season of his nine-year career so far. He has currently thrown for 1,866 yards with 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions, including a 67.1 completion percentage and a 94.4 QB rating.
He's only had one turnover in the Bears' 3 wins, but he's suffered a ton during the team's four losses. In fact, that's where all of his interceptions and fumbles have occurred.
We'll see if Cutler can quiet down the talk if he can lead Chicago to a win over the 5-2 New England Patriots this Sunday.
