Wow...I just re-read Mort's article and am sickened at the hyperbole. Honestly.
First, he spends so much time discussing this unnamed West Coast scout's opinion...who just happens to agree with Mort.
Second, he dismisses other "negatives" being discussed as universally being smoke screens to try to drive Cutler's stock down.
Let's put all the hyperbole away and actually discuss areas where Jay Cutler needs improvement:
Ball positioning -- Cutler carries the ball low [unlike Leinart]
Throws off his back foot -- Inconsistent mechanics including rotation of his hips through his release point, frequently throws off his back foot [Leinart almost never throws off his back foot]
Turnover prone -- Certainly his supporting cast hasn't helped but how about the 25 fumbles in the last two years?
Locks onto primary receiver -- Again, I realize he didn't have great receivers but how can you be SURE he won't have this tendency at the next level [Leinart most certainly goes through progressions with the best of them]
Poor judgment when flushed out of the pocket -- Maybe this is where Mort's comparison to Favre comes into play
...but on many occasions Cutler has thrown balls up for grabs or taken a sack trying to make a play when in fact he would've been better off throwing the ball awayThese are the most commonly mentioned flaws in his game I've seen from the various scouting sites. Care to ask how many of these Matt Leinart shares?
Good thread, btw. Fun stuff.
Bloom, I have been following both of them very carefully all season, not for one week.
MOP, I am a huge Pac 10 fan, and really wanted to see Leinart beat Texas. I like Matt personally. Trojan players voted him their most humble teammate. There is no hatred here. Just a decade+ of watching many a Pac 10 QB, get hyped and fail. Long live Palmer and God bless Plummer and Bledsoe. Despite my concerns, I sincerely (I mean sincerely) hope Leinart does very well.
Ball positioning low unlike Leinart. False. In the pocket Cutler and Leinart hold the ball identically, and they both have the bad habit of escaping the pocket with the ball in one hand (not tucked) and low.
Throws off his back foot unlike Leinart who almost never does. Had to chuckle at this one. Cutler throws off his back foot when he has to because there's no room to step up and it's now or sack. Very common in the NFL. Leinart sails the ball so much because he throws off his back foot all the time even when he has all kinds of room to step up. I refer you to games at Oregon at ASU and especially (because most saw it) against UCLA. Not once, not twice,
but six times in the first half he sailed the ball very high (out of bounds 4 times) and uncatchable,
missing wide open receivers while under no pressure whatsoever, four times with no defensive players even close. In every case he threw off his backfoot (and the commentators discussed it as replays displayed it). That game was no an aberration though a bit of an exaggeration of this serious concern in Leinart's game. I doubt Cutler ever had a game where he missed that many wide open receivers in the first half by sailing the ball high from his backfoot. It certainly wasn't an issue in the games I watched (3).
Turnover prone. A definite concern that goes beyond fumbling. I could argue the intense pressure is to blame, but I hate turnovers and Cutler is a gunslinger and a risk taker. I suppose he had to be, and at times he looked spectacular in the role, but he'll make brutal mistakes if this isn't corrected. He needs time with the clipboard and coaching (so do all rookie QBs). Leinart is smart and cautious with the ball, but he could afford to be. To an extent he'll lose that luxury unless he is handled like Ben and Orton were.
Locks on to primary receiver. Made me chuckle again. He only had one decent receiver who really wasn't decent. Leinart had four future NFL players in the pattern and five future NFL lineman blocking. Of course, he had time to go through progressions. He faced Pac 10 defenses, and Cutler faced SEC Ds. However, to say Leinart made great decisions and didn't lock onto Jarrett this year would be utterly false. Time after time he forced passes to Jarrett when other players were wide open. Leinart also has the bad habit of throwing to the wide open receiver who is
nearest the line of scrimmage-- a habit or luxury that will hurt him in the NFL. He won't have four open options like he did much of this year. On the other hand Cutler improvised constantly on practically every series and he's adept at making split second reads Leinart has little experience with. Leinart is already an ace at the line of scrimmage before the snap, however. His reactions after the snap are going to have to quicken.
Poor judgment when flushed out of the pocket. Gunlslinger. Not sure how fair this assessment is considering all the great plays he makes when flushed. If you can get your hands on the Kentucky game, you will be more impressed with him out of the pocket than worried about his judgment. He really didn't have much to work with, was playing from behind, trying to win games against much better all-around teams. A bit of winging it was called for, but this could be a problem if he's developed a heroic self-image. I won't question Leinart's judgment beyond the above comments. He is cautious. I think that's smart and will benefit him as he learns to cope with NFL speed and coverage. Two things Cutler has experienced much more realistically than Leinart.
Here's some flaws in Leinart's game that should be discussed.
Cannot set up and throw on the run.
Needs a big pocket to step up and get velocity on the ball.
Does not have an NFL 15 yard out in his arsenal. Period.
Underthrows the long ball.
Sails passes to the sidelines.
Struggles to make throws into a tight spaces and briefly opened windows.
Waits way too long for plays to develop.
Loves to party.
I doubt that Cutler breaks the top 10.
And he missed the three pete, by 10 inches
