NEW ORLEANS (AP) — After all the flack Jay Cutler
took at the end of last season, he now has a shot to start the 2011 campaign
with victories over a pair of quarterbacks with far superior reputations.
First came Atlanta's Matt Ryan, who despite his
youth has become one of the most respected and feared quarterbacks in the NFL.
On Sunday, the Bears (1-0) play at New Orleans (0-1), where Drew Brees has been
practically deified (some fans even call him Breesus).
Cutler's 312 yards passing and two touchdowns were
more than enough to lead the Bears to a dominant 30-12 victory over the Falcons
last weekend.
Given that his toughness and character were
questioned by fans and even fellow NFL players after he took himself out of
last season's NFC title game, one can only wonder whether Cutler covets a
chance to open this season by beating two straight teams whose quarterbacks boast
golden-boy images.
It's tough to know for sure because Cutler
expressed little interest in addressing the topic.
"I am not really worried about what happens
outside of our building," Cutler said. "As long as the guys in my
locker room are OK, I will be the same.
"I don't really worry about what other locker
rooms feel about me," he added. "This is a team game. I would love to
see us go 2-0 and just get our season started right."
If that happens, it should only fuel Chicago fans'
hope that Cutler and the Bears can make another deep playoff run. The Bears
expect to have star linebacker Brian Urlacher in the lineup just days after his
mother died suddenly.
New Orleans, by contrast, will enter a funk that
has nothing to do with its renowned music scene or the smell of Bourbon Street
on a hot, humid day.
Although the Saints provided a thrilling show on
opening night in Green Bay last week, they still came up short. Another loss in
the home opener would drop them to 0-2 for the first time since 2007, when they
missed the playoffs.
One key concern for the Saints is their defense,
which gave up five touchdowns in a 42-34 loss to the Packers.
In all, Green Bay racked up 399 yards from
scrimmage, including 109 against an interior defensive line that was supposed
to be shored up after the free-agent acquisitions of tackles Shaun Rogers and
Aubrayo Franklin.
The Saints also yielded 296 yards passing to Aaron
Rodgers, in part because of missed tackles leading to more yards after the
catch.
"It's frustrating, but at the same time, that
is a great offense and a great quarterback we played," Saints free safety
Malcolm Jenkins said. "But we're moved on from that, and we're excited
about this game, to be back home in front of our crowd and really put on a display."
To do that, the Saints will have to prove they can
contain versatile running back Matt Forte, who knows the Louisiana Superdome as
well as anyone after starring there for Tulane. He gave Atlanta fits last week
with 90 yards receiving and 68 yards rushing.
"He is a guy that really makes things work for
us," Cutler said. "You take him out of our lineup, we're going to
have a hard time functioning, (given) his ability to be an every-down back and
go out there and catch the ball and run the ball in between the tackles,
outside the tackles and pick up blitzes."
Only if the Saints stop Forte will they be able to
dial up more pressure on Cutler and perhaps force him into being the
mistake-prone quarterback he was in his turbulent first season in Chicago.
Yet Bears coach Lovie Smith seems confident that
Cutler is only going to get better the longer he plays in the Bears' system,
given the improvement he showed from his first season in 2009 to 2010, as well
as the way he has looked since 2011 training camp began.
"He did a super job of getting himself ready
for the season," Smith said. "He was the first guy in the building
for training camp. He had good training camp practices and he hasn't been an
issue. He's our leader. He's our quarterback. He knows all quarterbacks in the
league have to play well for your team to have success, and he led us. He made
all the right moves this past week."
Even Brees, who has thrown for more yards (23,337)
and TDs (158) than any quarterback during the past five seasons, and who is the
unquestioned leader in the Saints' locker room, warned that Cutler should not
be underestimated just because he seems to have a lot of critics.
"One thing he does pretty well is, he seems
like a guy who can overcome the adversity, put a lot of the distractions aside
and play football," Brees said. "He has some weapons around him
offensively. They have a great defense, so they have all the makings for a
great team. He understands that. He understands his role on the team."
Whether Cutler will ever alter his image remains to
be seen, and it's difficult to tell whether he really cares. Even off the
field, his character has come under public scrutiny, particularly during his
relationship with reality TV star Kristin Cavallari, which ended when he called
off their engagement shortly before their wedding day this summer.
Maybe he's not the marrying type. If the Bears beat
the Saints, though, Cutler will look increasingly like the winning type.
Copyright
2011 The Associated Press.
(AP
Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
