Last year the Chicago Bears had two quarterbacks play relatively well. Jay Cutler had his best season in a Bears uniform, while Josh McCown played the best football of his career. Some would say that head coach and noted quarterback guru Marc Trestman was a big factor in their improvement, and that he could get just about any quarterback playing above their career numbers.
Some fans thought it was the perfect opportunity to walk away from the inconsistent Cutler, while others felt Jay finally had a coach that could bring out his potential.
Some fans were thrilled with the out-of-this-world play from McCown and figured he could lead this team the next few years, while others called his 2013 season a fluke.
We all know what the Bears decided. Jay Cutler was signed to a mammoth deal and McCown was snatched up by Lovie Smith and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to be their starting quarterback.
Jay has started every game this season so far, with a few highs and plenty of lows. Josh has started 5 of Tampa Bay's games this season and he finally picked up a win last week. McCown hasn't looked as efficient as last year and Jay, while having good overall numbers, is turning the ball over too much.
Here's how the two players match up so far in 2014.
2014 | Jay | Josh |
Comp % | 67.0% | 63.4% |
YPG | 269.5 | 201.8 |
TD / TD% | 21 / 5.6% | 6 / 4.5% |
INT / INT% | 12 / 3.2% | 6 / 4.5% |
Fumbles / Fumbles Lost | 10 / 5 | 3 / 0 |
Passer Rating | 93.4 | 82.6 |
Neither team is playing up to expectations this season, Chicago is 4-6 and the Bucs are 2-8, but what if Josh McCown was re-signed over Jay Cutler? Do you think McCown would have been able to get this Bear O out of their funk?
There's obviously an overall difference in talent between the two offenses this year, but the fact remains that McCown's numbers aren't as stellar as in 2013. On Sunday McCown will have the benefit of going against the Bears' 25th ranked pass defense and Cutler will try to shred Lovie's Tampa 2 defense, which is currently ranked 30th against the pass.
Both players could be in for a big day.
If you were in the pro-Josh camp after the 2013 season ended, are you still feeling the same way? And what about you pro-Jay supporters? Do you still think the Bears made the correct decision in re-signing him over McCown?
Sound off in the comment section...