Cutler earns respect at Senior Bowl
By JOEY WARNER
Vanderbilt quarterback Jay Cutler was invited to Mobile, Alabama to showcase his talent in the 2006 Senior Bowl because he is one of the most highly regarded prospects in the Nation.
The talented signal-caller passed for 8,697 yards and accumulated nearly 10,000 yards in total offense in his career as a four-year starter at Vanderbillt. He threw 59 touchdowns, including 12 in his final games against Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee.
Some think that Cutler may have the tools and mechanics that position his abilities on a higher level than Vince Young of Texas and Matt Leinhart of Southern California. The South team was loaded with the other top prospects that just happen to be from the deep South.
Brodie Croyle of Alabama, Darrell Hackney of Alabama-Birmingham, and D. J. Shockley of Georgia were chosen as the quarterbacks to represent the South. Cutler was moved to the North team, which coincidentally was coached by Jeff Fisher and the Tennessee Titans ‘ staff. Seems like a hometown connection could be in the working; especially when the Titans will have the third pick in the 2006 draft.
“With the abundance of talent that we have in the South, it was evident that if we were going to have the best six quarterbacks in the senior class, and somebody was going to have to play for the North team,” Senior Bowl Media Relations Director Vic Knight said.
“The Responsibilitywe have to the NFL is to invite the best players, regardless of where they are from, and I think it was nice for Jay to play for coaches for a team from the same town he played Collegiately.”
Cutler started at quarterback for the North team and he responded well. He did not put up big numbers, although he made the most from his role in playing time as the North rolled over the South 31-14.
“It was great playing for the Titans’ staff and coming together with all these guys,” Jay Cutler said. “It was a great week for me and I am just happy I came down.”
The Senior Bowl is not an All-Star game that puts much emphasis on strategy to win or glory from statistics. It is a week of evaluation and development.
“It was great to work for Coach Norm Chow and it was very successful and I am looking forward to the combine,” Cutler said. “Everybody is trying to separate me from Young and Leinhart and I think I can do just as well as them at the next level, if not better.”
Norm Chow, Offensive Coorditator and quarterbacks coach for the Titans and former USC assistant, tutored Heisman Trophy winners Leinhart and and Carson Palmer. Chow thinks Cutler has heart and is glad that he had the opportunity to get his reps in the Senior Bowl.
“Jay had to do some things differently that we needed to see get done and I think he did a nice job for us,” Chow said. “It is hard to tell where he will end up because it is a personnel thing with what people need and what people want.”
Cutler ended the day 6-for-19 with a touchdown pass and an interception. On the North’s first possession, Cutler completed a 35-yard completion to USC tight end Dominique Byrd before he was intercepted at the goal line by Cedric Williams of Texas.
Late in the fourth quarter, Cutler tossed a 7-yard touchdown pass to Derek Hagan of Arizona State.
“I thought I performed well going into it and getting that touchdown pass on the last drive obviously made me feel better about the whole experience,” Cutler said. “I felt like I was one of the top quarterbacks in the Country coming into this and I feel that I am one of the best coming out so I am glad it went well.”
Cutler felt very good about playing with the so many future NFL players. “Everyone here is going to have an opportunity to play at the next level,” Cutler said. “I am excited and looking forward to the challenge of the next level.”
Titans head coach Jeff Fisher sees a lot of talent in Cutler and feels that he has a positive future in the NFL. “As the case of most of the players here, Jay improved steadily throughout the week, “ Fisher said. “Jay sees the field well, he has exceptional arm strength, and his decision-making is good.”
Fisher felt that Cutler was prepared and calm in his Senior Bowl performance. Steve McNair is still the Titans’ quarterback although the longevity of his career my be a question. Many analyst predict that the Titans’ could be looking for a franchise style quarterback that McNair can hand off to.
“We are going to look at all the players in all the positions and at some point, we willl have to address the quarterback position for the future standpoint,” Fisher said. “We are expecting Steve to come back but this is a great opportunity for Jay to get a head start.”
Steve Hale, President and CEO of the Senior Bowl and has managed the game that serves as a bridge for a player to cross before entering the NFL. “Jay is a special talent, he has been a very productive quarterback at Vanderbilt, he is a leader, and he is a cerebral quarterback,” Hale said. “He has all the intangibles to be an NFL quarterback and I would define him as being competitive.”
Hale praised Fisher for his 12 years of experience as a head coach in th NFL. “I think that it was a great opportunity for Jay to be able to work with Coach Chow and the entire Titans coaching staff.”
