Jets Lose Cutler Bidding and Win
The Denver Broncos traded Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler and a fifth round pick in the 2009 draft to the Chicago Bears for signal-caller Kyle Orton, first round picks in both the 2009 and 2010 drafts, and a third round pick in this April's draft Thursday evening.
The trade materialized less than two days after Broncos owner Pat Bowlen announced that the rift with his former leader and 11th overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft was irreconcilable.
Bowlen said he spoke with Cutler’s agent, Bus Cook, and realized that “Jay no longer has any desire to play for the Denver Broncos.”
The Broncos beleaguered owner continued, “We will begin discussions with other teams in an effort to accommodate his request to be traded.”
Cutler’s relationship with the Broncos organization deteriorated after Head Coach Mike Shanahan was fired and replaced by the New England Patriots offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels.
McDaniels, 32, an unprepared and incapable joke that has zero chance whatsoever of succeeding as an HC in the NFL, considered trading Cutler, 25, in a three-way deal that would have sent the 2005 SEC Offensive Player of the Year from Vanderbilt University to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and reunited the former New England coach with his Foxboro pet project, quarterback Matt Cassel.
Understandably, in the immediate aftermath of a tremendous 2008 campaign on the gridiron, the trade rumors chapped Cutler’s ass and he subsequently listed his Colorado home for sale and officially asked the Broncos to trade him to a more logical organization.
There is little question that Cutler behaved like a bitchy, Zsa Zsa Gabor-like diva during this entire fiasco in the Mile-High City and he absolutely deserves some blame for the two sides disastrous and needless divorce.
Nevertheless, why in the world would McDaniels stroll into Denver and immediately attempt to jettison the Broncos leader and franchise player? The unqualified McDaniels in actuality was hired because he rode the brilliance of Bill Belichick and Tom Brady to the top and, as Billy the Kid once said, "I wouldn't give a bucket of piss" for his future as a coach on the professional sidelines.
The Bears won the heated bidding war for Cutler over approximately ten teams. The highest bidders for the gunslinger with Type 1 diabetes were reportedly the New York Jets, Washington Redskins, and Bucs.
For a reasonable price, Cutler, who completed 23 reps of a 225-pound bench press and ran a 40-yard dash in 4.77 seconds at the 2006 NFL Scouting Combine, would have been a superior acquisition for the Jets. New coach Rex Ryan has vastly improved Gang Green's already adequate defense this offseason via free agency and and the Jets running game should remain very solid with AFC rushing champion Thomas Jones and firecracker Leon Washington returning to East Rutherford for the upcoming year. However, the price for Cutler skyrocketed to an exorbitant and crippling fee and in the long-run missing out on the cannon-armed thrower could prove to be the best transaction the lowly Jets never made.
New York will flourish if they play sound defense and run the ball well. If as expected they are able to successfully perform in those two areas , Ryan Leif could give the the 2009 Jets opportunities to win games lining up behind the gun.
By landing Cutler, the Bears will have the first Pro-Bowl quarterback calling plays at Soldier Field since Jim McMahon was traded from the Windy City to the San Diego Chargers in 1989. Still, despite Cutler's enormous skills, the value forfeited by Chicago may make Virginia Halas McCaskey's team face an even more severe bear market than many others in the coming seasons.
On the flip-side, although considered unlikely by analysts, if either Kellen Clemens, who was selected 38 picks after Cutler in the 2006 Draft and has never been provided a genuine chance to succeed in New York, or Brett Ratliffe can become a viable starting quarterback in the NFL, the Jets brass will be flying high for many years for not buckling in their hard-ball negotiations with the Broncos.
As the adage goes, sometimes the best trades are the ones that never occur. The Jets can only hope that is the case in this instance. If it is, failing to sign the native of Santa Claus, Indiana will be the gift that keeps on giving to fans of Gang Green.
The Top Ten College Players of the Past Twenty Seasons
In tribute to this weekend’s upcoming NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball national semifinals (the Final Four) at Ford Field in Detroit, I decided to rank the 10 greatest college basketball players to grace the hardwood over the past 20 seasons. It is imperative to note that this list is predicated off of player’s successes and accolades at the collegiate level and it is not based off of ones immense talent or future dominance in the NBA. Without further adieu, below are my nominations.
1) Christian Laettner- Despite being a smug and unlikable version of 90210’s Brandon Walsh, Christian Laettner is simply the most accomplished college basketball player of the past 20 seasons without a close peer.
Laettner, who was honored with every award fathomable during his collegiate career and is the only player to ever start in all four Final Fours, was the main ingredient behind the Duke Blue Devils consecutive national championships in the 1991 and 1992 seasons.
Laettner, the owner of the most points scored in the history of the NCAA tournament, will live in lore for his game-winning last-second jump shot that propelled Duke to a 104-103 victory over Kentucky in the 1992 East regional final.
The 92’ regional final is acclaimed by many as “the greatest college basketball game ever played” and it is appropriate that the epic battle was decided by one of the greatest college basketball players to put on sneakers.
2) Larry Johnson- Upon transferring from Odessa College to the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV) in 1988, "Grandma-ma" dominated the collegiate landscape and nearly led the Runnin’ Rebels to an unblemished season and consecutive national championships in 1991.
LJ was twice a First Team All-America selection and he won the Big West Conference Player of the Year award and he was its tournament MVP in both the years 1990 and 1991. Johnson, the winner of both the prestigious John R. Wooden Award and the Naismith College Player of the Year in 1991, is ranked 12th in career scoring and 7th in rebounding despite playing only 2 seasons for UNLV.
In 2002, regardless that they were as wholesome as a Nevada brothel, Johnson and star teammates Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony were inducted into the UNLV Hall of Fame along with the entire 1990-91 UNLV Men’s Basketball Team.
3) Tyler Hansbrough- "Psycho T," who is on the cusp of leading the North Carolina Tarheels to the 2009 national championship, will likely become the first player in ACC history to earn First Team All-America and First Team All-ACC honors in each of his four college seasons.
Hansbrough, the leading scorer in the annals of the ACC, is a formidable presence in the paint and nobody exerts more passion and energy than the Chapel Hill legend.
Hansbrough's moniker is "Psycho T." But, there are methods to the power forwards madness and those methods have made him one of the ultimate players in college basketball.
4) Bobby Hurley- Granted, the Duke icon looked like Eddie Munster in nut-huggers when he donned the Blue Devils snug shorts from 1989-1993. Still, his dreaded and feeble appearance notwithstanding, Hurley is justifiably considered one of the greatest point guards in NCAA history.
The Jersey City product remains the NCAA all-time assists leader with 1,076 dishes and he was a vital catalyst in the Blue Devils back-to-back national championships in 1991 and 1992.
Hurley, who participated in the Final Four three times, won the events MVP honors in 1992 and was named one of the fifty greatest players in ACC history a decade later.
Duke's floor general was drafted 7th overall in the NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings a month after his #11 jersey was retired in 1993.
Hurley may have resembled Herman and Lily Munster's only child. But, as the old adage goes, one can't judge a book by its cover.
Bobby Hurley was an absolutely spectacular basketball player.
5) Tim Duncan- The Virgin Islander American was a dominant force in the middle for the Wake Forest Demon Deacons from 1994 through 1997.
“The Big Fundamental,” who won successive ACC Player of the Year awards in 1996 and 1997, took home every valuable piece of individual college hardware before he was selected 1st overall by the San Antonio Spurs in the 1997 NBA Draft.
Duncan once compared his own personality to that of Matt Damon’s character in the movie Good Will Hunting.
"I'm just a taller, slightly less hyperactive version of the Damon character in the movie,” said Duncan. “I really enjoyed how he probed people and found out their weaknesses just by asking questions and stating outlandish remarks."
From this writer's vantage, there are zero similarities between Duncan and South Boston’s Will Hunting and it was “outlandish” for the power forward to compare himself to a mathematical wizard. Well, on second thought, Duncan did find out the “weaknesses” of every player he faced in college basketball for the four glorious seasons he played in Winston-Salem.
6) Shane Battier- Battier, known as “the ultimate glue guy” for playing sound, fundamental, team-oriented basketball, swept the major National Player of the Year awards in 2001 en route to leading the Duke Blue Devils to a victory over the Arizona Wildcats for the national championship.
Battier, the 2001 ACC Athlete of the Year who was picked 6th overall in the NBA Draft, had his jersey #31 retired by the Blue Devils.
Upon exiting Tobacco Road, Battier was named to the ACC 50th Anniversary men’s basketball team.
7) Carmello Anthony- Anthony played only one season (2002-2003) at Syracuse University. Nevertheless, Melo's one season epitomized the notion of quality over quantity.
The Baltimore native averaged 22.1 points and 10.0 rebounds as he helped guide the Orangemen to their first ever NCAA tournament title in 2003.
Anthony, an All-Big East First Team selection and the consensus pick for NCAA Freshman of the Year, was drafted 3rd overall by the Denver Nuggets following his March performance for the ages.
Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim neatly described Anthony when he said he was "by far, the best player in college basketball. It wasn't even close. Nobody was even close to him in college basketball. That's the bottom line."
Amen, Jim.
8) Jonathan Clay "J. J." Redick- Duke's sharpshooter dominated college hoops for four seasons before he was selected 11th overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2006 NBA Draft.
Redick, a yuppie who enjoyed getting shitfaced while enrolled in Durham, was a polarizing ballplayer that Travis Clay of CBS Sportsline once labeled the "most hated current athlete in America."
Nevertheless, Redick was a tremendous talent who won consecutive ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year awards and was also presented with every major basketball accolade during his senior season in 2006.
Redick was that "hated," because, like Triple H, he was "that damn good."
9) Keith Van Horn- Van Horn was the first player in the Western Athletic Conference named Player of the Year three times (1995, 1996 and 1997).
Van Horn, the 2nd overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1997 NBA Draft, is the leading scorer in WAC history and he was among 16 players named to Utah's "All-Century" basketball team.
Many analysts predicted that Van Horn would become the sports next "Great White Hope" ala Larry Bird.
Unfortunately, Van Horn never even sniffed Bird's status as a professional.
But, the Mormon was one hell of a college basketball player.
10) Glenn Robinson- The “Big Dog” was certainly not a dog when he played on the hardwood for the Purdue University Boilermakers.
In 1994, Robinson was named a First Team All-American in addition to being chosen as the Big Ten Player of the Year. Robinson, the 1st overall selection in the 1994 NBA Draft, was also deservedly granted the Naismith and John R. Wooden awards as well as being named the USBWA College Player of the Year.
Those that don’t recall Robinson’s shire dominance either aren’t fans of college basketball or they have enjoyed one too many boilermakers in their lifetimes.
Honorable Mention: Emeka Okafor
Before I receive a litany of hate mail with gripes that I am a biased supporter of Duke who wants to give Coach K a Lewinsky, let me be emphatically clear that I am a fan of the lowly Indiana Hoosiers. In actuality, I like the Blue Devils as much as I like Louis Farrakhan.
I developed a list of players and I narrowed my list down to the ten that I felt were the most accomplished ones to play over the past 20 seasons.
Obviously, the above rankings are my opinions and my estimations will inevitably differ from those of others.
I genuinely look forward to feedback from my readers.
Keywords: Chicago Bears and NCAA Men's Basketball, Denver Broncos. New York Jets
Comments
THIS JUST IN: GALLILEO WAS WRONG - EARTH DOES NOT REVOLVE AROUND THE SUN, IT REVOLVES AROUND NEW YORK CITY.
Who gives an Eric Mangina Rat's ass who you think are the tops college hoops players - YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT SPORTS ... except what you have learned from SportsCenter and that aint much. I'm doing laundry so bring up all those soiled socks from under your bed ... and stop picking your nose!