The Chicago Bears are stuck with quarterback Jay Cutler for at least one more season, thanks to a contract extension handed to the droopy eyed signal-caller just prior to last year by former GM Phil Emery.
Emery is, unsurprisingly, gone and new Bears head coach John Fox and GM Ryan Pace are reportedly itching for the opportunity to dump Cutler and move on at the quarterback position.
Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report recently polled a group of five NFL personnel men to gauge where they believe former Oregon quarterback and Heisman Trophy-winner Marcus Mariota will land in the 2015 NFL Draft - at least one unnamed NFL source believes the new Bears brass are a potential landing spot.
"My wild card is Chicago," the source told Freeman. "That new coaching regime can't wait to get rid of Jay Cutler."
Cutler, 31, finished last year for the Bears with 370 completions, 3,812 yards, 28 touchdowns and 18 interceptions for a quarterback rating of 88.6
The numbers aren't bad, but when you take into account the complete lack of leadership he brings to the table and the plethora of offensive weapons he was able to make use of last season - a group that included mammoth wide receivers Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery, tight end Martellus Bennett and running back Matt Forte - it's not hard to see why Fox and Pace are ready to cut the cord.
Cutler, per Spotrac.com, is set to make $15.5 million base salary for the 2015 season, while counting $16.5 million against the cap. Cutting him could cost Chicago a dead money cap penalty of $29.5 million.
He'll be a Bear this season - that is an absolute certainty.
If Chicago is able to add a player like Mariota in the looming 2015 NFL Draft though, the question becomes would Fox and Pace be willing to eat Cutler's $13 million dead money cap hit for 2016 in lieu of paying him $16 million?
If Mariota - or some other potential franchise signal-caller - is already in the fold, it certainly makes the proposition of absorbing that cap penalty much more palatable.
Without another answer though, Cutler is likely to remain the starter for the Bears for not just one more season, but two.
