The kid QB thinks big. Jay Cutler telephones Brett Favre for advice. He studies videotape of Tom Brady.
A winner only steals from the best.
But what really should make you think that Cutler could make a big name for himself in the NFL is the fact he is the first Broncos quarterback unafraid to be himself since John Elway retired.
In Cutler, Denver coach Mike Shanahan has finally found a QB with the combination of self-reliance and savvy to step out of Elway’s shadow without getting blinded by the light.
Everyone with eyes can see Cutler possesses an arm that’s strong enough to lift a Super Bowl trophy when and if the time arrives.
But what sets Cutler apart, what gives him a chance to write his own legend, is his fearlessness.
He is not nervous to work in the NFL town that made Elway famous.
Brian Griese and Jake Plummer were scared of Elway’s shadow.
There’s an easy, unforced swagger in the way Cutler has moved into the most scrutinized job in Colorado.
Unlike Griese or Plummer (painfully uptight predecessors stuck with the impossible task of making folks forget No. 7), Cutler is unafraid to poke fun at himself.
From the pee-wees to the pros, there are only two statistics that really matter for a quarterback or coach. Wins. And losses.
When asked Monday about his meager track record in the NFL, Cutler did not cringe or snap. He put on a sheepish grin and casually shrugged the shoulders burdened with the heavy responsibility inherent to the jobs of quarterback or coach.
“It’s been like that for a long time. It’s going to be like that in the future,” Cutler said. “What is my record, 2-3 now? Or something? I think Mike’s is a little bit better than mine.”
Cutler got that right.
Counting the playoffs and two championships won in Denver, Shanahan’s solid-gold record (131-74) as a pro coach is what gives him the currency to bet so big on Cutler.
The acquisitions of running back Travis Henry and defensive lineman Sam Adams seemed to be as wise as they were necessary for the Broncos.
But, any way you cut it, ultimate success or failure for Denver this season will come down to Cutler and how quickly the young quarterback can progress from the trials of on-the-job training that were evident during his previous five games as an NFL starter.
“He’s undefeated this year,” said Shanahan, comfortable enough to crack a joke at the expense of Cutler’s inexperience. “So he’s done a good job.”
There are loyal Broncomaniacs who maintain shrines to Elway in the basement, yet protest that it’s unfair to keep comparing Denver quarterbacks to the man, the Biff and the legend.
Sorry, nobody said life as a Denver QB was fair.
Until the Broncos win another Super Bowl, the first two words in any discussion of football in this dusty old cowtown are destined to be “John” and “Elway.”
Maybe it was growing up in the afterglow of a famous quarterback father. For whatever reason, Griese seemed almost defiant in his mission to pass through Denver incognito – which might explain why so few people missed him after he was gone.
And Plummer, bless his ever-loving rebel soul, wasted too much energy fighting against the idea that a well-paid quarterback had to live up to anyone’s expectations, yet allowed himself to be coated in so much vanilla by Shanahan until even the die-hard faithful who loved Jake the Snake had trouble recognizing him.
New Broncos receiver Brandon Stokley, who used to work with a pretty fair country meat-cutter named Peyton Manning back in Indiana, has seen something in the demeanor of Cutler that’s as impressive as the kid QB’s arm.
“He’s not afraid to take chances,” Stokley said of Cutler. “And I love that.”
Of course, for every young NFL quarterback, there can be a steely thin, dangerously sharp line between fearless and reckless.
To dance on that knife’s edge, Cutler had better be 100 percent unafraid.
I’m betting on the kid QB to not only survive but thrive.
Staff writer Mark Kiszla can be reached at 303-954-1053 or mkiszla@denverpost.com.
