Bears quarterbacks coach Matt Cavanaugh is in love.
OK, maybe that’s an overstatement. But Cavanaugh sure does sound like he loves Jay Cutler after the brief time they’ve had to work together this offseason.
“Very impressed with Jay,” Cavanaugh told the Chicago Tribune. “Very impressed. He’s borderline football brilliant. I think he gets it. I think he knows the game. I think he knows offensive schemes. I think he knows defenses.”
Cavanaugh said Cutler is warming to the Bears’ new offense and eager to learn from the Bears’ new coaching staff.
“I think he’s embracing how we want to approach things,” he said. “There has been a lot of give and take. We didn’t come in here with a mandate that this is exactly how we’re doing it and there is no leeway. We wanted his feedback. He’s been willing to do that. It’s a good working relationship now.”
Heading into the final season of his contract, Cutler is facing a make-or-break year in Chicago: If he plays well, he’s likely to get a big new deal in 2014. If he plays poorly, the new regime in Chicago is likely to go shopping for a new quarterback in 2014. It’s way too early to say how things will work out, but Cavanaugh likes the early returns.