Caleb Hanie: Is He a Viable Option To Start for Chicago Bears Over Jay Cutler?
Caleb Hanie nearly earned himself mad respect from everyone in the city of Chicago.
When Jay Cutler left Sunday's NFC Championship Game with an injury, the Chicago Bears turned to veteran backup Todd Collins.
But that didn't last long, and Collins was quickly replaced by Hanie, listed as the team's third-stringer.
And though Hanie certainly had his struggles, he also played pretty well overall considering the situation he was thrust into.
As for Cutler, well, he's getting blasted by the media for not returning to the biggest game of his career.
So, might we have a little quarterback controversy on our hands?
It's time for a little debate: Could Hanie be the Bears starting quarterback in 2011?
Let's get to it.
5. No: The Offensive Line Woes
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Jay Cutler is a pretty mobile quarterback, but you'd have to strap a rocket to his back for him to cover up the poor play of Chicago's offensive line.
The Bears gave up an NFL-worst 56 sacks during the 2010 regular season after giving up 35 in 2009.
That means that Cutler's hit the dirt 91 times over a 32-game span.
Caleb Hanie is not a more athletic QB than Cutler, and he's not going to somehow improve Chicago's O-line overnight.
Unless Hanie's going to play tackle or guard (and be good at it), it's going to be incredibly hard for him to outplay Cutler.
5. Yes: Cutler Might Not Fit in Chicago
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Like a square block in a circular hole, sometimes two things just don't fit together.
Jay Cutler is the block, and the Bears are the hole.
Since coming over to Chicago, Cutler's seen his yardage, completion percentage and interceptions all go in the wrong direction.
He's looked lost, baffled and downright bewildered in a Bears uniform at times.
And that begs the question: Is Cutler the water to Chicago's oil?
There's no definitive answer—or any way to prove it at least—but maybe the Bears and Cutler just weren't meant to be.
4. No: The Same Problem As Cutler
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Though Caleb Hanie looked good at times on Sunday, it was almost like watching the second-coming of Jay Cutler out there.
For every few big plays Hanie would make, a key miscue would follow.
Yes, Hanie completed 65 percent of his passes and led the Bears to two fourth-quarter touchdowns.
But he also had the same problem as Cutler—throwing picks.
Hanie tossed two interceptions in the game, one of which sealed the win for the Green Bay Packers.
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4. Yes: Hanie's Flashes of Potential
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However limited his action may have been, Caleb Hanie did show flashes of potential for Chicago this season.
He was 2-of-3 passing against Carolina, 3-of-4 against the New York Giants and 13-of-20 against Green Bay in the NFC Championship Game.
Hanie's resume is definitely incomplete, but he's working toward building up quite the credentials.
Though he's been more like an intern than a full-time employee, he's looking like a young gun who could make a swift rise to upper management.
All Hanie needs is a shot to prove he belongs there for good.
3. No: Cutler's Toughness
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People across the Internet—fans, former/current players and the media—have blasted Jay Cutler for sitting out the majority of the second half on Sunday.
Really?
Cutler has missed just one start in the past four seasons.
Keep in mind that this is the same Cutler who was sacked a league-leading 56 times this season and also plays with Type 1 Diabetes.
If Cutler isn't tough, then no one who missed more than two games since the beginning of the 2007 season is either.
3. Yes: Cutler's Interception Problems
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In four-plus seasons as a starting quarterback, Jay Cutler has shown the ability to throw perfect passes, escape the pocket and make some big-time plays.
Unfortunately, he's also had an unhealthy obsession with throwing interceptions.
In 68 career regular season games, Cutler's thrown 79 picks, and he has at least 14 picks in each of his four seasons as a full-time starter, with a career-high 26 interceptions last year.
There comes a point when the excuses run out, when a quarterback just can't avoid throwing the ball to the other team.
If Cutler hasn't corrected his pick problem by now (his fifth season in the league), will he ever?
2. No: When Cutler's On, He's On
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When Jay Cutler is playing up to his potential—and his offensive line is blocking for him—few NFL quarterbacks are better than he is.
It's why Chicago traded for him, and it's also why he has 109 career touchdowns at just 27 years old.
Is Cutler an elite quarterback? No.
But he appeared to be headed in that direction at one point.
And it's not like the guy has lost all of his abilities to play the game of football.
If he can channel his inner-Denver days, then Cutler should be right back on track.
2. Yes: Cutler's Gotten Progressively Worse
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Rather than progress, Jay Cutler has seemed to regress over the past four seasons.
Let's take a look at the numbers:
2007: 88.1 QB rating, 63.6 completion percentage, 3,497 yards, 20 touchdowns and 14 interceptions
2008: 86.0 QB rating, 62.3 completion percentage, 4,526 yards, 25 touchdowns and 18 interceptions
2009: 76.8 QB rating, 60.5 completion percentage, 3,666 yards, 27 touchdowns and 26 interceptions
2010: 86.3 QB rating, 60.4 completion percentage, 3,274 yards, 23 touchdowns and 16 interceptions
The disturbing trends are a huge decrease in yards, way too many interceptions and a plummeting completion percentage.
Maybe Cutler's struggles run deeper than we know.
1. No: Hanie's Inexperience
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After going undrafted out of Colorado State, Caleb Hanie made his way to the Chicago Bears last season.
But other than sit on the bench or hold a clipboard, he hasn't done much since then.
Hanie threw seven passes in 2009, seven in 2010 and 20 in Sunday's NFC Championship Game.
For anyone who's mathematically challenged, that's 34 career passes.
And that's exactly 34 more NFL passes than you or I have thrown.
1. Yes: Hanie Did What Cutler Couldn't Do
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For more than two quarters with Jay Cutler at the helm in Sunday's NFC Title Game, Chicago's offense floundered, flopped and fumbled.
The Bears did their best Carolina Panthers impression, putting up exactly zero points in the entire first half.
But what Cutler failed to do in more than 30 minutes of play, Caleb Hanie did twice in an eight-minute span in the fourth quarter.
That is, Hanie led the Bears to not one, but two touchdowns to at least give Chicago a shot at a comeback.
The Hanie-led Bears scored 14 points in half-a-quarter.
The Cutler-led Bears threw for 80 total yards in two full quarters.
The Verdict: Is Caleb Hanie A Viable Option to Start for Bears Over Jay Cutler?
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Given Jay Cutler's up-and-down tenure in Chicago and his abrupt departure form Sunday's NFC Title Game, it's easy to make Cutler the scapegoat in the situation.
Especially when you consider how well Caleb Hanie played, it's not surprising to see people jumping on the Hanie bandwagon.
But given Chicago's offensive line woes, Cutler's potential and Hanie's lack of experience (34 passes, people!), why anyone sees him as a better option than Cutler is beyond me.
The element of surprise may have caught Green Bay off guard, but it won't if Hanie starts every week during a 16-game season.
The Verdict: Nope! We haven't seen enough from him yet.
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