Rozner: Chicago Bears dump a guy, collect another

Jay Cutler arrived in Chicago to fanfare generally reserved for greatness, but offered by a desperate populate that didn't know any better and was so consumed with hope that it tossed perspective to the wind.

Cutler was hugely overrated when he got here in 2009.

And hugely overhated when tossed to the curb Thursday.

In between, there was much drama and many injuries, not to mention a stadium filled with interceptions.

There was some very good, some very bad and a lot of mediocre.

It might be wise to remember the thoughts of my grandmother, who at times like this would place palms to the sky, shrug and mutter, "Ehhh."

So should be remembered the Jay Cutler era in Chicago.

He was a victim of his immense ability, always accompanied by massive disappointment.

He was held to a standard never met at any level of his playing career before arriving in Chicago, and was yet established somehow when he unpacked his luggage in Lake Forest.

Yes, it should have been better, and the blame for that rests in some part on Cutler and in large part on the incompetence of Bears ownership and management.

They were handed a Lamborghini and never learned to operate it.

Lovie Smith thought offense was a nuisance.

Marc Trestman was rumored to understand it, but he has yet to figure it out at the NFL level.

Cutler averaged nearly an offensive coordinator per year during his eight forgettable years in Chicago, and when he finally found a professional in Adam Gase who could make the most of Cutler's strengths he was allowed to depart for Miami.

The Bears changed the system nearly every season.

Some years Cutler had few weapons.

Frequently, a leaky offensive line meant he was constantly pounded or running for his life.

Even then, the Bears wondered why he would try to make something happen and too often throw the ball to the wrong jersey.

So much talent, so little success.

Enigmatic doesn't even begin to describe someone with that ability, possessing an elite football mind, who could never put it all together.

Still, it's impossible to put those words on paper without thinking of the foolishness around him, and that he nevertheless leaves as the Bears' all-time leader in passing yards, TDs, completions, yards per game and - of course - sacks.

Hardly a leader of men who rarely inspired at a position where it is entirely necessary, Cutler was adored by some - like Kyle Long - and despised by others - like many on his own defense.

Enter Mike Glennon, who has thrown 11 passes the last two seasons, all coming at the end of a blowout in 2016.

He's just a guy, but he's Ryan Pace's guy, and let's not forget Pace tried to trade Cutler the minute he took the job.

Glennon is the appliance your neighbor drags out to the end of the driveway. It hasn't been working, but if someone comes along, picks it up and gets it running, so be it.

Good for you.

It doesn't happen very often, but sometimes picking up someone else's trash means finding a treasure.

So a truly odd and disappointing chapter in Bears history ends and we turn the page to what is next, questions remaining at the most important position on the field.

If the Bears are fortunate, Thursday's events will be met with a single and resounding thought.

Ehhh.

brozner@dailyherald.com

• Listen to Barry Rozner from 9 a.m. to noon Sundays on the Score's "Hit and Run" show at WSCR 670-AM.