Here Is One Lesson Every Bears Fan Should Learn From Jay Cutler
“Probably should have just went inside during that NFC Championship game and not sat on the the sidelines. There’s probably a few press conferences where I would have been more vocal about things. I probably would have done a few things differently. It’s one of those things where, once you start down that path you are going down a rabbit hole.”--Jay Cutler on the Dave and Eddie Show
It is crazy to think about, but Jay Cutler's decision to stay on the sidelines looking all mopey while Caleb Hanie threw a touchdown to BJ Raji probably ended Jay's career here more than anything else. The guy was hurt. He couldn't play. He decided to stay out there in that giant jacket and those camera shots of him on the sidelines soured him with a GIANT portion of the fanbase. It is the image that comes to mind more than any other of the Jay Cutler era. I mean hell, even my sister was vocal about how much she hated Jay Cutler and she watched maybe a combined 20 mins of the Bears in any given season. It is a god damn shame because the Bears were looking for THE GUY since the NFL was founded and Jay Cutler could've been that guy. The City didn't appreciate him as they should've and now we back to being stuck in this endless cycle of misery.
We are shockingly, and seemingly, on a theoretical "up" swing of that cycle. Hope is there with Justin Fields. He looks the part. We are all excited. We need to learn from our mistakes with Jay. We need to not overreact to one image. One press conference. One play. We need to ride the wave of having a promising and talented young QB and not sling mud at the guy every time something doesn't go perfectly. If Cutler goes to the locker room in that moment and doesn't break his thumb trying to make a tackle against the Chargers then who knows what he accomplishes in Chicago and what his legacy is. He could be universally recognized as the greatest QB this city has ever had instead of a guy who 10 years after the fact people have grown to love and appreciate through social media posts. I don't want to go through that again so I need everyone to be cool. This is like that scene in The Godfather where Vito Corleone says he will forgive the loss of Sonny, but if something were to happen to Michael he would not be so forgiving. We need to be better fans with Fields. We need to not let one decision like sitting on the sidelines when hurt shape the entire narrative around a player. Don't let the talking heads and the meatheads ruin a good thing. Let's enjoy it. Let's allow Fields to grow and have a few bumps in the road without running him out of town.