PAUL WOODY: Both sides guilty in Cutler spat

WILLIAMSBURG Jay Cutler tossed soft passes to the young campers at the Colonial All Pro football camp at William and Mary yesterday.

That was in sharp contrast to the hard words he threw at the Denver Broncos this spring.

When the Broncos drafted Cutler out of Vanderbilt in 2006, he was their quarterback of the future.

Last year, he gave the Broncos a glimpse of that future when he threw for 4,526 yards and 25 touchdowns.

Quarterbacks with such statistics usually enjoy job security equal to a United States Congressman in a personally gerrymandered district.

Yet, Cutler now is the quarterback for the Chicago Bears.

What transpired in Denver is an example of how not to handle a situation, by everyone involved.

"Looking back, I'm sure there are things they would do differently and some things I would do differently," Cutler said.

The Broncos blundered when new head coach Josh McDaniels felt he had to have Matt Cassel as his quarterback. McDaniels coached Cassel in New England.

Cutler blundered when he reacted badly to the Cassel rumors. Cutler all but stomped his feet and held his breath until he got his way and was traded.

Yes, Cutler stuck it to "the man." "The man," though, was paying Cutler millions of dollars to play a game.

Cutler's performance last season earned him a spot in the Pro Bowl, but it did not earn the Broncos a playoff spot.

Denver needed to win one of its final three regular-season games to take the AFC West.

The Broncos went 0-3.

The defense and coach Mike Shanahan bore most of the blame. Shanahan was fired.

Cutler does not get off unscathed. A franchise quarterback has to be able to win one of those three games -- two of the opponents, Buffalo and San Diego, finished a combined 15-17 -- despite the problems of the defense.

Cutler came up short. His 18 interceptions were second-most in the NFL to Brett Favre's 22. He's only 17-20 as a starter.

That doesn't mean McDaniels had to replace him. Coaches, too, often want new players instead of finding ways to get the most out of the players they have.

Part of the problem was New England Patriots arrogance. The Patriots have been wildly successful under Bill Belichick.

Even last season, after losing starting quarterback Tom Brady to a knee injury and using Cassel, who had not started a game since high school, the Patriots finished 11-5.

It was a remarkable coaching job. That does not mean football was invented in New England.

And it certainly does not mean McDaniels had to try to replace Cutler. A coach does himself no favors by destroying the trust of his quarterback.

McDaniels needs to learn that patience is a virtue, not a sign of weakness.

Cutler should so the same. His feelings might have been hurt, but he is supposed to be a professional.

When Cassel wound up in Kansas City, Cutler should have done his job and let his performance take care of the situation.

When Cutler went on the trading block, a number of teams were interested. Cutler has a powerful arm and vast potential. But what counts most in the NFL is production.

All Cutler has produced so far is proof he can throw a tantrum. Now he needs to prove he can win.

Contact Paul Woody at (804) 649-6444 or .