Editor’s note: This story was first published Sept. 6, 2006, four days prior to the Denver Broncos’ season opener at St Louis.
The gunslinger not only has arrived in this dusty old cowtown, he has shown a real good aim from long distance. Jay Cutler is going to be something, all right, and the man he will replace one day knows it. Jake Plummer, the Broncos quarterback since as far back as four years ago, says all the right things about the kid, does all the right things, and that has drawn the admiration of many.
More important, Plummer has performed as if he doesn’t give a hoot who’s lurking from behind. The kid may be good, but Plummer’s reaction has been to step inside the first-team huddle and prove he remains the best man to lead the 2006 Broncos.
“I’m not stupid. They didn’t draft Jay to sit behind me for four years and then wait for me to say: ‘OK, I’m done, I’m tired. I’m going to retire,”‘ Plummer said. “That’s not the way of the road in this league. But until my time comes, I’m going to play my butt off for these guys and in return look for them to do the same for me.”
In some ways, the Broncos got lucky. This could have been dicey. Mike Heimerdinger, the Broncos’ offensive coordinator, heard stories how Tennessee veteran quarterback Chris Chandler was not exactly pleased to have a kid named Steve McNair around.
Then again, Chandler’s insecurity was understandable considering he spent his first six or seven years as a backup or struggling part-time starter. Plummer, in contrast, had been starting all nine years of his career by the time the Broncos moved up on the draft board April 29 to pick Cutler with the 11th selection.
To date, Denver has no quarterback controversy primarily because Plummer has defused it. If anything, he has seemed friendlier, more playful, less agitated by his media friends who repeatedly try to ferret out his feelings about Cutler’s presence.
“The other day when Jay was having trouble with some steps, Jake helped him through it,” Heimerdinger said. “He’s always telling him what he sees. There’s been nothing there. Jake’s had a great camp.”
Cutler has done his part to apply pressure. In four preseason games, he completed 40-of-62 passes for 561 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. His 111.3 passer rating in the first two games had exceeded the league-leading 104.1 mark Peyton Manning posted last year.
Impressive, until Plummer’s early preseason performance is reviewed. Taking far fewer preseason snaps than the kid who needed the training, Plummer completed 9-of-12 passes for 130 yards and a whopping 137.5 rating in the first two games before going 10-for-22 for 96 yards in the third game against the Houston Texans. Plummer didn’t play in the preseason finale against the Cardinals.
This has not been “may the best man win.” This is a quarterback situation that has two good men standing.
“The result of Jay coming in has made the entire position sharper, better,” Broncos general manager Ted Sundquist said. “Certainly Jake has handled the whole situation like a pro. I would say the acquisition of Jay has focused Jake that much more on reaching his goal of helping us win a championship. I think he’s improved his game as a professional quarterback in all the phases.”
Plummer keeping his cool
Before getting too carried away, anytime a new hotshot comes around, whether in a neighborhood, a sixth-floor office or a professional football team, there are going to be awkward moments.
Even if Plummer is unaffected, he has supporters who are bothered by speculation his job eventually will become jeopardized.
“You guys create all that negative energy and you bring that in here,” Rod Smith, the Broncos’ veteran receiver, said in the team’s locker room after a convincing 35-10 preseason victory over Tennessee on Aug. 19. “I hate it. Don’t bring that in here. Let our guys play and let the coaches decide who should play.”
In defense of the media, Cutler’s play has not been easy to ignore. Praise of his preseason performance does not necessarily insinuate he should replace Plummer here and now. But it can be taken that way.
There’s another wild card in this Plummer-Cutler competition to consider: Mike Shanahan. The local media have been around the Broncos’ coach long enough to not be shocked at the unexpected. Six weeks ago, hardly anyone figured Shanahan would dare put a team’s Super Bowl intentions in the arms of an undrafted rookie.
Yet, before the Broncos had played their first preseason game, Mike Bell had been anointed the No. 1 tailback, leapfrogging the more proven Ron Dayne and Tatum Bell. True, the difference between running back and quarterback can be as vast as land and air. A number of rookies have excelled as an NFL running back. The list is drastically shorter at quarterback.
Yet, there is a list. Miami’s Dan Marino threw 20 touchdown passes against six interceptions in his rookie season of 1983. Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger went 13-0 as a rookie starter in 2004.
Put it this way: If at some point this season Cutler became the Broncos’ quarterback, it may not be Shanahan’s boldest decision.
“I’m not going to lie, Jay is a heck of a football player,” Plummer said. “He’s going to get his chance. For him, the best thing he will have going for him is when he does get a chance to play here, they’ll have a great running game. So it’s not going to be all on his shoulders – although Mike puts it on us to make plays. And that’s what Jay has, he has the arm to make plays. He’s very smart, he knows the game. He can move pretty well.”
Right attitude for situation
Funny thing is Plummer’s general attitude about life, often subject to criticism in Broncoland, may be the perfect antidote to dealing with what others would consider stressful competition.
“I didn’t think he would be affected at all, just because he’s the type of guy who doesn’t really care what people think or what people say,” Broncos tight end Stephen Alexander said. “He just does what he does and doesn’t worry. I think that’s why he’s such a good quarterback.”
Last season, Plummer showed up at a national news conference before the AFC championship game wearing jeans, an undershirt and enough facial hair to cause the Beatles to blush while crossing Abbey Road. Next to the likes of Tom Brady and the Manning brothers, Plummer is the NFL’s anti-establishment quarterback.
In truth, Plummer said he is simply a byproduct of his Grandma Hazel’s influence. Grandma Hazel was a spiritual person who would never pass a homeless person without saying hello, come on in, have something to eat.
“If I walk in here tomorrow and you see my beard and go, ‘Oh, my …’ you know what? Shame on you,” said Plummer, who currently is sporting a relatively clean-cut shag. “I don’t judge a soul. I don’t judge black, orange, yellow, or a horn coming out of your head. One tooth, scabs all over your face, I’ll treat you the same. Just show me what you’re made of. That’s how I was raised. So when people have problems with my appearance, I laugh.”
Grooming habits, however, aren’t all that have kept Plummer circulating around the area’s coffee-machine conversations. In his three years here, he has been caught making a behind-the-head, backhanded gesture to a heckling fan. He has chewed out a local society columnist for her part in outing the identity of his girlfriend. More recently, he allegedly kicked the vehicle of a horn-blaring motorist.
The road-rage incident was big news. That the disagreement interrupted Plummer’s rush to a charity event was not.
“I think Jake gets a bad rap around here,” Cutler said. “He’s done some things he might regret, he might not. But he’s a good guy. He’s been good with me. He’s helped me out a lot. The team respects him.”
See there? The young gun has Plummer’s back. Maybe, there will be no quarterback controversy in Denver this year. Maybe, all the Broncos have is a quality quarterback they can count on this year, and for years to come.
“It goes both ways,” Plummer said. “Jay’s not a cocky, stuck-up kid who came in here thinking, ‘I’m the 11th pick, look out.’ He’s respectful, willing to learn. I mean, he just got out of college. I’ve been in the league nine years.
“But I’m not playing hard and practicing hard to keep him at bay. I’m practicing hard and playing hard to try to win games for my team. Try to win a Super Bowl. Now if the time comes where that’s not good enough and he gets a chance, then there’s nothing I can do.”
The quarterbacks
Incumbent: Jake Plummer. Averaged 11 wins in three seasons with the Broncos.
Young blood: Jay Cutler. His arm will make it tempting if Broncos are down late.
Projection: Cutler may get some late-game duty but is not expected to start until 2007.
Mike Klis can be reached at 303-954-1055 or mklis@denverpost.com.
