Jay Cutler was voted captain by his team. He is best at leading his team in the clutch.
Perhaps, this kid Cutler should be called Captain Clutch. Or Clutch Cutler. Or The Kid.
Cutler has played in only seven NFL games. The Broncos’ quarterback has led a fourth-quarter, game-rallying scoring drive in the past three.
The streak began in the final game of 2006. Win and the Broncos are in the playoffs. Lose and the Broncos are finished. They were trailing San Francisco 23-16 when Cutler led the Broncos on an 80-yard, game-tying scoring drive capped by a 9-yard touchdown pass to Tony Scheffler with 1:35 remaining.
The Broncos lost in overtime, but that doesn’t diminish the fourth-quarter pressure. To open 2007, the Broncos were trailing Buffalo 14-12 with 2:13 left. Cutler directed the Broncos on a 42-yard drive that took up all 2 minutes and 13 seconds and set up Jason Elam’s frenetic, game-winning field goal.
No. 3 came Sunday against the Raiders. The Broncos were down 20-17 with 8:55 remaining.
“Any quarterback would like to go out there and go up 31-7 and ease into the fourth quarter,” Cutler said. “But we haven’t been that fortunate so far. We’ve been in some tight ballgames, we’ve had to make some things happen late in the fourth quarter and I’m fine with it.”
On third-and-11 from his own 29, 7:30 remaining, Cutler, from the shotgun, hit Brandon Stokley for a 23-yard gain to the Oakland 48. Captain Clutch was doing it again.
“He’s big, he’s pretty calm out there,” Broncos center Tom Nalen said of Cutler. “He’s definitely big in the huddle, and we respect him, and he’s getting it done.”
Running back Travis Henry did most of the work in taking the Broncos to the Raiders’ 38, but on second-and-11, Cutler hit Javon Walker for 12 yards and later on a 5-yard completion to the 2. Elam booted in the game-tying field goal from there.
“I was really pleased with his poise when the pressure was on,” Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said of Cutler.
Staff writer Mike Klis can be reached at 303-954-1055 or mklis@denverpost.com.
