Jay Cutler for Matt Cassel: Broncos Should Still Make the Trade

Everyone is focused in on March Madness odds so much right now that they may have neglected one of the biggest storylines of the year in the NFL.

Jay Cutler has demanded a trade from the Denver Broncos.

On one hand, you might look at it from the perspective of, say, an Anquan Boldin/Chad Johnson situation. In reality, Cutler is under contract with the Broncos, and they don't have to appease him in any way. He is obligated to show up and play, or he won't get paid.

But it's pretty clear that Johnson/Boldin don't have the same type of impact on their team. A sour Cutler can uproot the team's success, whereas a malcontent like Johnson is just a distraction.

Should Cutler continue to be miffed, sour, and in general a problem, the Broncos are going to have no choice but to move him. A wide receiver you can push to the side. The trigger man of your offense and the player you are building your entire franchise around—you can't sweep that under the rug.

There are sportsbook odds up already that Cutler will not be playing with the Broncos at the start of the 2009 season.

Odds makers project Detroit and Tampa Bay as the favorites, but the wild rumors and speculation have just begun to fly.

Just today, there was a crazy rumor posted about Cutler and a first-round pick for Tom Brady. Other people have thrown Cutler to the New York Jets as a possibility.

Along those lines, I'm tossing this one into the hat: Jay Cutler for Matt Cassel.

Let's face it, new Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels wants Matt Cassel. He even said so in a face-to-face with Cutler over the weekend, which is part of the reason why we've come to this point.

On the flip side, if you are the Kansas City Chiefs, before, Cassel was the best name you could acquire to build your franchise around, but Cutler is significantly better.

Cutler is a proven, Pro Bowl caliber-type quarterback, and he's a far smaller risk than Cassel. He's also cheaper than Cassel, who is set to make $15 million this year (roughly).

For Denver, the only way that they can make amends for this entire mess is if they get Cassel.

They could trade Cutler to the Lions for the first pick overall and draft Matthew Stafford, but the fans will view that as a huge step backwards. They could trade Cutler for defensive pieces, or other draft picks, or more cap space, but all of those moves will be also viewed as downgrades.

The only move that could potentially look as a somewhat lateral move is to acquire the man they sought out to acquire earlier in the offseason: Cassel.

If the Broncos can get Cassel and a pick or two, it's still a tough sell, but it could work. After all, the Broncos were attempting to pull that off anyways.

Outside of that, the Broncos' trading of Cutler looks like the type of move that could send the Broncos into a Detroit Lions-like tailspin.

We've seen this before, like when the Boston Bruins traded Joe Thornton away. Or when the Los Angeles Lakers traded Shaquille O'Neal for 30 cents on the dollar. Or when the Toronto Raptors traded away Vince Carter.

The common theme is that none of the teams that have sold off their star have recovered. McDaniels might be the next Jerry Glanville, and he probably won't ever recover if the Broncos trade Cutler. The only way that he can save face now is to get his hands on who he originally set out to get, Matt Cassel, and hope that he pans out.