Jay Cutler is a Hoosier. He was born in and raised in Santa Claus, IN., which is located in Southern Indiana's Spencer County; just a few miles away from the Ohio River. I personally know the area well as I was born in Evansville, IN, and for years after my folks moved me to northside Indy, we would visit our Southern Indiana resident family members often.
So, because Jay is a Hoosier boy from Southern Indiana, and because his new head coach was once the offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, it allows me (a Colts fans) a unique perspective on the titanic screw job the Broncos and their management have done while transitioning from the Mike Shanahan regime to the Patriots- Rocky Mountain West Edition regime.
Before we begin, let's get some info from Jay Cutler on why, exactly, he has formally asked the Denver Broncos to trade him (from ESPN, via comment from phantom818):
“I went in there with every intention of solving the issue, being a Bronco, moving forward as a Bronco,” Cutler said. "We weren’t in there but about 20 minutes, [McDaniels] did most of the talking and as far as I’m concerned, he made it clear he wants his own guy. He admitted he wanted Matt Cassel because he said he has raised him up from the ground as a quarterback. He said he wasn’t sorry about it. He made it clear that he could still entertain trading me because, as he put it, he’ll do whatever he feels is in the best interest of the organization.
OK, take a moment to digest that. Now, cut through all the useless crap and focus in on the humor of Cutler's statement. He is telling us that his new head coach, Josh McDaniels, thinks that Matt Cassel is a better quarterback than Jay Cutler.
Um. That's just... that's just... wow.
Well, let's start with the obvious: Josh McDaniels should be fired on the spot by Denver's owner (Pat Bowlen).
This has nothing to do with how he handled Cutler or the fact that he said he would "listen" to trade offer. I'm sure the Colts have "listened" to trade offers for Peyton Manning, and after listening they've laughed and told the folks on the other end to get lost. McDaniels should be fired because talent evaluation is EVERYTHING in this NFL. Knowing who is good and who sucks as a coach is as important as a doctor knowing where your heart is located and where he has to insert the knife to operate. And since Josh McDaniels thinks Cassel is better than Cutler, this means he is totally and completely incompetent. And no team can win in this NFL with an incompetent coach.
This screw-up also provides us Colts fans with yet another example of why teams should stay the hell away from Bill Belichick's coaches. If Denver had hired Leslie Frazier, do you think this crap would be going on now? Do you think he would be junking Denver's only strength (it's offense) and not trying to fix its horrid defense? I'll tell you this much, Frazier would not be so stupid as to think Matt friggin Cassel is better than Jay Cutler.
By the way, Frazier is a Tony Dungy disciple. Dungy's guys tend to do well when they move on to the head coaching ranks. Belichick's guys? Well, not so much. Makes you think.
Folks, this is what happens when teams get poisoned by the infection known as "Bill Belichick's assistants." Cleveland rotted away with the Romeo Crennel syndrome. Notre Dame is dying of the Charlie Weis pandemic. Now, only a month or so into the off-season, Denver is showing symptoms.
Because of all this, the Broncos are now forced to trade Cutler. McDaniels has also lost his locker room even before he has coached a game. It is really, really hard to respect someone who thinks Matt Cassel is better than Jay Cutler. It is even harder to respect someone when they would rather stock the team with "their guys" rather than try to work with the talent available.
You have my sympathies, Denver fans. Your team is going to suck for a while longer. McDaniels is an idiot, and the best player on your team (Cutler) is a goner. If you are a Chargers fan now, you are in stitches.