Bears Land Cutler

Jay Cutler has finally been traded. And the Windy City is Cutler's new home.

From Chicago Sun-Times Reporter Mike Mulligan:

"The Bears acquired quarterback Jay Cutler today for No. 1 draft picks in 2009 and 2010, a No. 3 pick this year and Kyle Orton, the Sun-Times has learned. The Bears receive the Broncos' fifth-round draft pick this year.

Cutler, 25, is coming off a Pro Bowl season with the Broncos, but he became disgruntled and wanted a trade after learning Denver was considering a deal for quarterback Matt Cassel."

This is a shocking move considering the history of the Bears organization. They never trade for big named players, and more specifically they never go after talented quarterbacks. Now they have both. You know I'm a Bears fan, so I'm thrilled to see this. But still, a shocking development.

Finally, a quarterback for the Bears, for the first time since Sid Luckman.

April Fool's Day

Where exactly this "holiday" came from, I have no flipping clue. It's hopelessly stupid, and every year, without fail, I'll come across someone that tries to pull some sort of poorly conceived prank or joke.

Now, I know that the first of April isn't much to celebrate, but, in honor of the big day, I present to you a few things in the sports world that, if you heard them, you would almost certainly be waiting for a loud, "APRIL FOOLS!"

New York Yankees Front Office: In light of the recent economic downturn, we've decided to scale back ticket prices. Tickets that originally cost nearly $2600 will now cost approximately $100 dollars. In fact, even when the economy rebounds, these more realistic prices will remain.

Gary Sheffield: All I want is for the team to get better. If that means me losing at-bats so that some of the young guys on this team can develop, I'm all for it. Honestly, I don't care if I ever get to 500 home runs. Winning comes first for me.

Barry Bonds: Alright, alright. You caught me. I did it. I took steroids. Phew, that feels like a load off, you know? Why I thought this whole aloof, tough guy thing would play well in the media, I have no idea. Can I just get back to playing the game I love so much now?

Gary Bettman: We really don't feel as if the strike hurt our league that much. In fact, we think we've come back stronger. More people that watch Versus on a nightly basis watch our sport than any other sport.

Shaquille O'Neal: From now on, I promise not to make mountains out of molehills, flop, or do anything else to stir the pot unnecessarily to bring my name back into the headlines. I will simply let the fact that I'm still playing at a high level (actually, true) speak for itself, and hope that does enough.

Albert Haynesworth: Yes, 100 million dollars for a defensive tackle is a bit steep. OK, it's down right ridiculous. Especially when you consider I've only really tried hard the last two years.

Jay Cutler: Josh, my bad. I've acted a little immature. Truth is, I can kind of understand the idea of wanting Matt Cassel instead of me. No big deal. I'll be there in a little bit.

LeBron James: I don't know what New York is getting so excited for, I'm actually going to go and play in Europe when my contract's up. Poland's where it's at, y'all!

David Stern: We truly believe that this year, it's anyone's game. Sure, the Celtics and Lakers are playing well, but it's not like we're rooting for them to make the Finals or anything.

Any Cubs Player In The Last 100 Years: No, the pressure never gets to us. Just bad luck and bad circumstances. We don't really buy into the whole "curse" thing.

The list of these is potentially endless. Any others in mind?

Hump Day Headlines

In this April Fool's Edition of Hump Day Headlines, no fooling anyone in the AP All American Picks, the Broncos have finally decided to trade Jay Cutler, coaches not named John Calipari get new deals, and how far did the Notre Dame basketball program fall in just one year...

• The AP First Team All-American team was announced yesterday, and all five picks seem obvious to me. Oklahoma's Blake Griffin was a unanimous pick (shocker!), while North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough, Davidson's Stephen Curry, Pittburgh's DeJuan Blair, and Arizona State's James Harden rounded out the rest of the first team. All five players are obviously deserving, and they show that while the college game has lost some great players to the NBA, there are still some fantastic players at the top in college basketball. How good these guys will be at the next level? It's hard to say. Blake Griffin will probably be the top pick in the draft, and figures to be an impact player right away. Scott was clearly not impressed with James Harden. Tyler Hansbrough's draft status is unclear, Steph Curry may or may not go pro this year (and if he does, is he the next J.J. Redick?) and DeJuan Blair might be too short to be an impact player as a back to the basket 6'7" forward. Whether they're good or not though at the professional level, let's enjoy the fact we got to watch these guys be great college hoopsters. As an avid college hoops fan, I enjoyed watching all of them.
• The Denver Broncos soap opera released its latest episode today: the news that they will in fact deal their star quarterback somewhere. Jay Cutler will be on the move, and it appears that there are at least six teams that will be involved in some capacity to try and acquire the Pro Bowler's services. The Jets, Buccaneers, Bears, Lions, 49ers and Browns are all apparently interested, and the Jaguars "may" be interested. (You know who I'm rooting for in that sweepstakes.) There are also reports circulating that the Redskins might be interested even though they have Jason Campbell. Before you start complaining that this story is getting annoying, let me remind you one simple fact: at least we're not talking about T.O. or the Cowboys.
• Missouri Head Coach Mike Anderson was awarded with a new seven year contract worth between 1.3 and 1.5 million dollars per year. This comes after he impressively took the Tigers to the Elite Eight this season. The former UAB head man has shown why he always had the Blazers competing down there and now at a bigger school his coaching efforts have realized their potential. Good for him. Another coach rewarded for his success was former Washington State head coach Tony Bennett, who has moved on to the ACC and the University of Virginia. Bennett will be paid $1.7 million annually after he lead Wazzu to a 68-30 record in three seasons out west. People need to start getting used to the fact that the football and basketball coaches are now the highest paid people at many Division I Universities.
• Finally, remember when Notre Dame was a top ten team at the beginning of this college basketball season? This must seem like eons ago, because the Fighting Irish finished off a highly disappointing season by losing in the NIT Semifinals to Penn State. Notre Dame finished just 21-15, and Mike Brey must be searching for answers after he had second team all-American Luke Harangody (overrated, but still) Kyle McAlarney, Ryan Ayers and Tory Jackson on that team. Far too much talent to finish the way they did. Maybe Mr. Mock-Turtle himself should be considered for the hot seat? What a horrific year for Notre Dame sports teams. First more mediocrity from Chuck Weis, now this.

Look Out NFL: Good QB Potentially Available

It wouldn't make sense to trade him, but Broncos QB Jay Cutler may be on the market.  That's because the Broncos apparently already tried to trade him to acquire new Chiefs QB Matt Cassel.  Of course, that plan failed.  But Cutler feels betrayed by Denver and now wants out.

According to ESPN.com's Bill Williamson, Cutler was originally unhappy when the Broncos fired former coach Mike Shanahan and opted for former Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.  But meetings between the new coach and his quarterback had Cutler publicly praising his new coach and he was excited to quarterback the new offense.  This has apparently changed now that Cutler knows his coach didn't want him running the Broncos offense after all.

"The relationship has been tarnished,"  said Williamson's source.  "I think it's beyond repair.  It's like a knife to Jay's heart.  It will be hard for him to get past this."

According to Williamson, Tampa Bay, Detroit and Chicago are all interested in acquiring Cutler if the Broncos decide they have to unload him.  This would seem to make sense, since neither of the three teams has a good quarterback, and Tampa Bay was trying to get Cutler in the three team trade.   

Cutler doesn't become a free agent until the end of the 2011 season when he's a restricted free agent.  He signed a six year contract in 2006 when he was the 11th pick by Denver.  So the Broncos could try to smooth things over with the angered QB and make him deal with the situation for the next two years.  

If not though, a good QB could be on the market.  NFL GMs beware.

Coaches Should Stick To Coaching

Mike Shanahan is just the latest example of a coach turned vice president/general manager that didn't work out.  

Granted, he was fired because of his team's inexplicable collapse to end this past season.  The Broncos held a three game lead over the once left for dead Chargers.  While San Diego surged to the finish line, the Broncos lost each of their final three games.  That included a 52-21 drubbing in San Diego in season's final regular season game.  

Yet Shanahan was a great coach during his fourteen year tenure in the Mile High City.  He won two Super Bowls with John Elway.  He was called a mastermind for his amazing running offense that could allow seemingly any running back to rush for one thousand yards.

But couple his coaching responsibilities with all player personnel moves, and he becomes much more ordinary.  While there still is promise on the offensive side of the football (i.e. Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall, Eddie Royal), the Broncos defense was abysmal.  Denver allowed an average of 28 points per game, which ranked 30th in the NFL, and 29th in yards allowed, giving up a dismal 374.6 each week.

And, just look at that defense.  The personnel Shanahan is running out there couldn't be much worse.  What happened to the signature Broncos defense of a few years ago which featured skilled and speedy linebackers, a ferocious interior line and outstanding cornerbacks that dictated the passing game of their opponents?  It seems that the mastermind ignored that side of the ball, and it cost him his job in the end.

Not to mention the fact that his once vaunted running game, often considered the NFL's gold standard over the time Shanahan has coached in Denver, had Peyton Hillis lead it this year with a grand total of 343 yards rushing.  (For more on this, check out Scott's post on Shanahan's firing here.)

Shanahan was spread too thin, like many of the great football minds before him who have taken on too many football responsibilities with one team.  Despite his genius on the field, he couldn't translate that intelligence off of it, because it's nearly impossible for these men to juggle two extraordinarily exhausting jobs effectively.

He's not alone.  It didn't work out for Mike Holmgren in Seattle.  It has been up and down for Andy Reid in Philadelphia, as his team has had successes and disappointments during his tenure in both spots.  And don't forget what it has done for his troubled children.  Joe Gibbs was a phenomenal coach for the Redskins, who won three Super Bowls with three different quarterbacks under his tutelage in the 80s and early 90s.  But when he took over the Redskins from 2004-2007, he was a pedestrian 30-34 over those four years as coach and president of the team.  Bill Parcells was once coach and general manager at the same time.  But both times he won the Super Bowl with the Giants, George Young was his GM.

It's just too much work.  NFL coaches spend 365 days a year working towards a successful season.  How can anyone expect them to be good general managers at the same time?  Those around football know how many hours these coaches spend watching film, scheming game plans and coaching players.  How can they have time to make every player personnel decision as well?

Usually, they don't.  Or at least, they don't have enough time to do it well.  That's why coaches should stick to coaching.  Let general managers be general managers.