Denver Native (Carol)
10-11-2008, 09:46 AM
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/oct/10/cutler-adds-a-dash-of-scrambling-to-recipe/
It's a fight or flight mechanism.
Stand your ground in the pocket or take off.
Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler would much rather survey the field and deliver the ball downfield to his receivers than go into scramble mode.
But as the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday demonstrated, Cutler has some wheels in the open field and isn't afraid to pick his spots using them.
Cutler never will be confused with Vince Young or even David Garrard, his counterpart Sunday (2:05 p.m., CBS 4), but he does present enough open-field ability on the run that defenses have to take that skill into consideration.
"You look at his speed. He's 4.75," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said, citing Cutler's 40-yard dash time coming out of Vanderbilt.
"That's good speed for a quarterback. And he's 230 pounds."
Less desirable if you're the Broncos: Cutler isn't averse to using his stockiness to draw contact instead of sliding to a safe stop.
Plenty of evidence
Exhibit A came in the preseason opener at San Francisco last season, when, at the end of a 16-yard run up the middle, Cutler's helmet was dislodged by safety Michael Lewis.
Exhibit B was on display in the regular-season opener this year, at Oakland, when Cutler saw an opening until he was sent airborne by cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha after a strike on the QB's knee.
The latest example came on a third-and-11 late in the first quarter Sunday against Tampa Bay. The Broncos bunched three receivers to the left and split Brandon Marshall wide right, aligning running back Michael Pittman offset to the right in the shotgun formation.
Cutler took the snap, quickly surveyed the field, took a couple of crow hops in the pocket and, with Tampa Bay rushing only three linemen, took off, beating Bucs linebacker Cato June to the left sideline. Cutler then lowered his right shoulder and drove through cornerback Ronde Barber out of bounds, past the first-down marker.
"That's probably the last person I'm going to hit like that this year, hopefully," Cutler said.
He wasn't even done against the Bucs.
One first-down scramble was wiped out by a holding penalty. But on another, Cutler's knee was ruled down by replay after he bolted up the middle but was tripped from behind by hustling defensive end Greg White.
"They played some two-man," Cutler said of the split-safety alignment Tampa Bay employed deep, helping explain his unusually heavy rushing load in the first half. "That opens up the middle of the field, and sometimes the only way to take that away is for the quarterback to run and get them out of it. Some opportunities opened up. We got them out of it in the second half. They zoned up on us and it opened up some (passing) windows."
Cutler has come a long way in developing the "clock" in his head, telling him it's decision time and to move it or lose it.
Certainly, he has taken leaps from his NFL debut two years ago, which was marked by a penchant for holding on to the ball too long and taking a beating because of it in a game against Seattle.
Chalk it up to experience, both present and past.
"In professional football, there's a different sense of timing than there is in college. Maybe it's close at Vanderbilt, especially with who they were playing, or at least closer to it," Shanahan said, alluding to Cutler playing behind a suspect offensive line going against Southeastern Conference competition replete with pro prospects.
"That's why he does take off. But it has a lot to do with the defenses that he's looking at, where he knows everybody's cleared out and he's got a chance to make a play."
Making progress
Cutler's improved decision-making in that respect is evidenced by the fact that five of his seven rushes last year of at least 10 years in his first full season as a starter came from mid-October on.
So far in 2008, he already has two 10- yard-plus scrambles.
"If there's nothing there, he's got the ability to run," quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates said. "It puts a lot of pressure on the defense and gets them out of some coverages that they sometimes play against guys who won't run."
Cutler's mobility, pocket feel and quick release also help explain why Denver has yielded only two sacks during its 4-1 start.
"We don't have to hang on our guys as long, because he gets rid of the ball," right guard Chris Kuper said. "And with him taking off a couple times last week, if he feels he's in a bind and there's pressure, it helps us out a lot."
It's clear, though, that Cutler is apt to take off only under duress or if the defense backs off, opening an obvious lane.
"He's going to do whatever it takes to win," Bates said. "That's why he's a special player."
Cutler has rushed 15 times this season, but six of those attempts have come on game-ending kneel-downs.
Asked this week if he needed to run more, Cutler had a quick response.
"No," he said, breaking into a smile and shaking his head. "No . . . "
It's a fight or flight mechanism.
Stand your ground in the pocket or take off.
Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler would much rather survey the field and deliver the ball downfield to his receivers than go into scramble mode.
But as the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday demonstrated, Cutler has some wheels in the open field and isn't afraid to pick his spots using them.
Cutler never will be confused with Vince Young or even David Garrard, his counterpart Sunday (2:05 p.m., CBS 4), but he does present enough open-field ability on the run that defenses have to take that skill into consideration.
"You look at his speed. He's 4.75," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said, citing Cutler's 40-yard dash time coming out of Vanderbilt.
"That's good speed for a quarterback. And he's 230 pounds."
Less desirable if you're the Broncos: Cutler isn't averse to using his stockiness to draw contact instead of sliding to a safe stop.
Plenty of evidence
Exhibit A came in the preseason opener at San Francisco last season, when, at the end of a 16-yard run up the middle, Cutler's helmet was dislodged by safety Michael Lewis.
Exhibit B was on display in the regular-season opener this year, at Oakland, when Cutler saw an opening until he was sent airborne by cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha after a strike on the QB's knee.
The latest example came on a third-and-11 late in the first quarter Sunday against Tampa Bay. The Broncos bunched three receivers to the left and split Brandon Marshall wide right, aligning running back Michael Pittman offset to the right in the shotgun formation.
Cutler took the snap, quickly surveyed the field, took a couple of crow hops in the pocket and, with Tampa Bay rushing only three linemen, took off, beating Bucs linebacker Cato June to the left sideline. Cutler then lowered his right shoulder and drove through cornerback Ronde Barber out of bounds, past the first-down marker.
"That's probably the last person I'm going to hit like that this year, hopefully," Cutler said.
He wasn't even done against the Bucs.
One first-down scramble was wiped out by a holding penalty. But on another, Cutler's knee was ruled down by replay after he bolted up the middle but was tripped from behind by hustling defensive end Greg White.
"They played some two-man," Cutler said of the split-safety alignment Tampa Bay employed deep, helping explain his unusually heavy rushing load in the first half. "That opens up the middle of the field, and sometimes the only way to take that away is for the quarterback to run and get them out of it. Some opportunities opened up. We got them out of it in the second half. They zoned up on us and it opened up some (passing) windows."
Cutler has come a long way in developing the "clock" in his head, telling him it's decision time and to move it or lose it.
Certainly, he has taken leaps from his NFL debut two years ago, which was marked by a penchant for holding on to the ball too long and taking a beating because of it in a game against Seattle.
Chalk it up to experience, both present and past.
"In professional football, there's a different sense of timing than there is in college. Maybe it's close at Vanderbilt, especially with who they were playing, or at least closer to it," Shanahan said, alluding to Cutler playing behind a suspect offensive line going against Southeastern Conference competition replete with pro prospects.
"That's why he does take off. But it has a lot to do with the defenses that he's looking at, where he knows everybody's cleared out and he's got a chance to make a play."
Making progress
Cutler's improved decision-making in that respect is evidenced by the fact that five of his seven rushes last year of at least 10 years in his first full season as a starter came from mid-October on.
So far in 2008, he already has two 10- yard-plus scrambles.
"If there's nothing there, he's got the ability to run," quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates said. "It puts a lot of pressure on the defense and gets them out of some coverages that they sometimes play against guys who won't run."
Cutler's mobility, pocket feel and quick release also help explain why Denver has yielded only two sacks during its 4-1 start.
"We don't have to hang on our guys as long, because he gets rid of the ball," right guard Chris Kuper said. "And with him taking off a couple times last week, if he feels he's in a bind and there's pressure, it helps us out a lot."
It's clear, though, that Cutler is apt to take off only under duress or if the defense backs off, opening an obvious lane.
"He's going to do whatever it takes to win," Bates said. "That's why he's a special player."
Cutler has rushed 15 times this season, but six of those attempts have come on game-ending kneel-downs.
Asked this week if he needed to run more, Cutler had a quick response.
"No," he said, breaking into a smile and shaking his head. "No . . . "