While there’s little doubt that Jay Cutler remains the Bears’ most important player, the next two and half weeks in Bourbonnais really should not be about the polarizing quarterback.
If you think you’re going to learn anything new about Cutler in his seventh trip to Olivet Nazarene University, then you’re fooling yourself. He’s now 32 years old with nine NFL seasons under his belt. You know exactly who this guy is: a very talented, mistake prone quarterback who the Bears can win with if his hiccups are limited. That’s not going to change in 12 training camp practices in Bourbonnais.
Sure, the way in which head coach John Fox and offensive coordinator Adam Gase go about the very difficult challenge of harnessing Cutler’s talents in a way that limits turnovers and keeps the chains moving is a very important storyline this season, but we’ve seen plenty of impressive practices from Cutler in Bourbonnais over the years, and the coaching staff is unlikely to show any legitimate game plans in practices open to the public.
Maybe the live practices against the Colts in Indianapolis Aug. 19-20 will provide a glimpse into any progress Cutler has made, and you can always put at least a little stock in the third preseason game, which won’t take place until Aug. 29 in Cincinnati, but really, fans should wait until the Sept. 13 opener against the Packers before they make any conclusions regarding the quarterback.
And while the familiar silly storylines are bound to follow Jay Cutler this season — his leadership skills, his body language, his maturity — the only storyline that really matters is no different than any other season: Can Jay Cutler avoid turning the ball over?
That question is simply impossible to answer until the real games begin.
Quick Hits
– That’s not to say training camp will be a waste of time. In fact, far from it. Eight positions on defense are completely up for grabs and the position battles always matter once the pads go on. As of right now, only Pernell McPhee, Kyle Fuller and Antrel Rolle look like locks to start. The rest of the defense is a toss up and the competition will be fun to watch in Bourbonnais.
– Will either Shea McClellin or Jon Bostic get cut? It’s a fair question. The issue with Bostic is his health, as he missed the entire offseason program. We’ll find out Wednesday if he has been cleared for training camp. If not, Bostic will only fall further behind in a brand new defensive scheme. To be honest, I’m not all that optimistic about either Bostic or McClellin in Vic Fangio’s defense, but McClellin has two things working for him to avoid being cut: 1) Bostic’s back issues and 2) the extreme lack of depth at inside linebacker. Ultimately, I think both players make the 53-man roster, but if I were them, I’d start to brush up on my special teams.
– Tuesday, I debuted my brand new Bears podcast called “Intentional Grounding.” I’ll be churning one out every week during the season, including during training camp. In the first episode, I discussed the biggest questions going into camp and provided a few “bold” predictions. The Chicago Tribune’s Dan Wiederer also joined me to discuss his in-depth story on John Fox. You can listen to the entire first episode here:
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Wednesday’s Schedule
There’s no practice as players will trickle into Olivet Nazarene University throughout the day. Ryan Pace and John Fox will hold a press conference at 2 p.m. CT. The first practice will take place Thursday at 9:35 a.m. (no pads).
On The Air
I’ll have a full recap of Wednesday’s activities at 7:20 p.m. CT with Justin Kaufmann on WGN Radio and WGNRadio.com.
Adam Hoge covers the Chicago Bears for WGN Radio and WGNRadio.com. He also co-hosts The Beat, weekends on 720 WGN. Follow him on Twitter at @AdamHoge.