The Chicago Bears may look at making some major moves this offseason, as a Jay Cutler trade could be in the cards, while the trade or release of Brandon Marshall also could be an option for John Fox and this comes as teams like the Washington Redskins, Houston Texans, Tennessee Titans, Cleveland Browns and New York Jets could be interested.
Cutler is coming off of a rough season that saw him get benched and while his numbers were very solid career-wise, overall he was not very good. Cutler was benched in Week 16 of the season and that put his future in Chicago up in the air. Marc Trestman and Phil Emery were fired after the season and while they were the decision makers on Cutler, his future in Chicago is still not certain. According to Pro Football Talk, new general manager Ryan Pace has the authority to make the decision on Cutler and it comes after he brought in Fox to take over for Trestman.
Last season Trestman could not get the offense going and part of that was due to Cutler, who turned over the ball too much and could seemingly not get in a rhythm with the group. Cutler put up a career high 28 touchdowns last season and completed over 65 percent of his passes, but he also had 18 interceptions and six lost fumbles. Fox was "non-committal" on Cutler in his opened press conference, according to Pro Football Talk, but that was too early and too public of a place to make any actual decisions on Cutler.
Brandon Marshall's future is up in the air as well, as he is making a high amount of money on his contract and is coming off of a down season by his standards. According to the Chicago Tribune, Pace, Fox and Marshall met this offseason and Marshall was "assured nothing" about his status in 2015 and while he said that he hopes to remain with the team, he is making $7.5 million next year. Marshall had 61 catches last season for 721 yards and eight touchdowns, but he missed three games and ended the season on IR.
Cutler has a salary of $15 million after signing a seven year deal last year and that could make him a hard player to move in a trade. According to Michael C. Wright at ESPN Chicago, Marshall and Cutler will likely be back, but the team may still explore moves with both players this offseason. Cutler could be a target for the Cleveland Browns, New York Jets or Houston Texans, as all those teams could have new QBs next season. The Redskins are planning to stick with RG3, but if they make a move at QB they could be interested in Cutler.
The Bears were very disappointing last season while going 5-11, as they have some elite offensive talent in Matt Forte, Marshall, Cutler, Alshon Jeffery and Martellus Bennett. Heading into 2015 Adam Gase has the chance to bring the offense back to where it was a couple years ago and if Cutler remains, he could help him rebound after the way 2014 went. Gase led the Broncos to offensive records over the past two years and Peyton Manning put up some of the best numbers of his career.
