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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler said Tuesday he hopes to see disgruntled running back Matt Forte during the summer, although it doesn't sound like he expects to see him Monday at the first voluntary offseason conditioning workout.

Forte can't attend the workouts if he doesn't sign the tender he received after being designated as the team's franchise player, or if he can't get an extension worked out.

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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler said Wednesday he believes his team isn't done adding offensive weapons, and he campaigned for former Denver Broncos teammate Eddie Royal to be brought on board.

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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler said Wednesday he couldn't be more excited about reuniting with receiver Brandon Marshall, and Cutler said he's confident Marshall will stay out of trouble, despite being accused of hitting a woman in a New York City nightclub over the weekend.

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A look at the connection between Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall during their stint together with the Broncos.

Brandon Marshall hinted back in January that he would like to play with Jay Cutler again in an interview with “The Waddle & Silvy Show” on ESPN 1000.

“I am originally from Pittsburgh, so I'm a little cold-blooded,” Marshall said. “This is a crazy business and you never know what can happen. You can never say never in this business."

He also spoke about how it was difficult for him to reminisce about the time he spent playing with Cutler.

“It's actually painful," he said. "It's hard to find that. Sometimes it's once in a lifetime ... when you take two guys and put them on a field together and they have that chemistry, that's what's like almost impossible to find. I can't explain it.

“We'll line up out there and we'll get a coverage and he'll just look at me and I'll know exactly what he wants to adjust my route on. You don't find that. The chemistry was great, it was something special."

Now, Marshall will have the chance to make a new history with Cutler on the Bears.

Brandon Marshall talks about his chemistry with Jay Cutler.



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Jay Cutler played with Brandon Marshall during his three seasons on the Broncos. He recently told “The Waddle & Silvy Show” on ESPN 1000 why he thinks Marshall is such a special player.

“So big. So physical. Does an unbelievable job of getting open,” Cutler said. “His physical presence and physical ability I think are second to his mental side of the game. I’ve never been with a receiver that understands the game, understands why we’re doing some things. We’ll be in the course of a game and Brandon will just go in the slot or he’ll flip it over to Z. He just understands coverages. He wants the ball every snap, which is a problem sometimes, and that’s why he switches around. But I’ll tell you what -- he’s fun to play with.”

Marshall and Cutler were both rookies on the Broncos in 2006. Cutler was the 11th pick of the first round and Marshall was selected in the fourth round. They both played sparingly in their rookie seasons, with Marshall starting just one game and Cutler starting five. But they combined for 206 receptions for 2,590 yards and 13 TDs in 2007 & 2008, becoming one of the most productive quarterback-wide receiver tandems in the NFL. Then Cutler was traded to the Bears before the beginning of the 2009 season.

Jay Cutler talks about playing with Brandon Marshall.


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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler said Monday he's excited the team hired Jeremy Bates as its quarterbacks coach, and Cutler said he hopes the revamped front office will add some offensive weapons.

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This is the first installment of a 10-part series that reviews every Bears position group on offense and defense, while also taking a quick look at potential free agent targets and the top prospects in the upcoming NFL draft.

Jay Cutler flashed enough development through the first 10 games of the 2011 to merit inclusion into conversations about the NFL’s elite at the position. Then he suffered a fractured thumb that forced him to miss the final six contests, ruining what seemed to be a promising season.

If anything, Cutler’s injury taught the Chicago Bears the value of keeping a capable No. 2 on standby, considering the team lost five of six down the stretch.

With the team set for the future with Cutler at the helm as the starter, the Bears face a couple of interesting dilemmas this offseason with backups such as Josh McCown and Caleb Hanie set to go into unrestricted free agency.

In addition, new general manager Phil Emery must also determine whether rising second-year player Nathan Enderle fits into the offense the team will utilize under new coordinator Mike Tice, while figuring out whether the quarterback possesses enough upside to warrant a roster spot for 2012 as a developmental prospect.

THE CURRENT ROSTER

•Jay Cutler: Cutler averaged 229.1 yards passing, which ranks as the third-best single-season mark in franchise history, and his passer rating of 85.7 registered as seventh in franchise annals.

Prior to Cutler’s thumb injury, the club ranked sixth in scoring (26.8 points per game), and it seemed the quarterback -- at the time of the injury -- was playing his best football as a Chicago Bear. There’s concern about how Cutler will perform in 2012 playing for his third offensive coordinator in four seasons.

But Tice has been clear about his intentions of catering the offense to fit Cutler’s talents. So the transition should be smooth. Look for the new offense to feature the ability to audible, in addition to several plays with moving pockets to take advantage of Cutler’s mobility.

•Caleb Hanie: Following a promising showing in the 2010 NFC title game with a few shaky performances when given the opportunity to start in relief of Cutler. In four starts, Hanie tossed nine interceptions, and finished the season with a passer rating of 41.8.

Those showings, coupled with the fact he’s a free agent might mean Hanie won’t remain with the team in 2012. But don’t be so fast to make that assumption. Hanie wasn’t an ideal fit for Mike Martz’s offense, but what Tice plans to implement actually caters to what the quarterback does well.

The club likely won’t ever trust Hanie again as the No. 2. But there’s a small chance he sticks as the third quarterback.

•Josh McCown: Played well enough to warrant consideration as the No. 2 behind Cutler in 2012. But the club would be doing itself a disservice if it doesn’t bring in competition from outside for the job.

McCown completed 63.6 percent of his passes in the three games he played (two starts), and showed plenty of poise in the pocket as well as an ability to make things happen with his legs when things break down. It’s likely the Bears will extend McCown an offer to return, but the club could have some competition from other teams based on the way the quarterback performed late in the season.

•Nathan Enderle: Inactive for 14 of the team’s 16 games, Enderle never received an opportunity to play even when Hanie struggled to fill in for Cutler because the coaching staff deemed the rookie unready.

For a brief period during training camp, Enderle moved ahead of Hanie on the depth chart. But Enderle didn’t develop enough -- because of limited repetitions -- to become a realistic option as a backup.

Handpicked by Martz because he possessed the traits to thrive in that pass-oriented system, Enderle may no longer be considered an ideal fit for what the Bears plan to do with Tice as the offensive coordinator.

Bears free agents: Hanie, McCown

POTENTIAL FREE AGENT TARGETS

•Kyle Orton, Kansas City Chiefs, unrestricted
•Jason Campbell, Oakland Raiders, unrestricted
•David Garrard, unrestricted

WHY GARRARD MIGHT MAKE SENSE

Unlike Orton and Campbell, Garrard likely won’t be expensive, and he won’t enter a new situation looking to win the starting job. Besides that, Tice is familiar with Garrard from their time spent together with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Garrard, 34, has started 76 career games, with a career completion percentage of 61.6 and a passer rating of 85.8. A 10-year veteran, Garrard has thrown just 54 interceptions in 2,281 attempts. Physically, Garrard possesses many of the traits (strong arm, good mobility, and toughness) that would make him an ideal fit for Tice’s offense.

Will there be a Jay Cutler-Brandon Marshall reunion in Chicago? As the Miami Dolphins receiver said, "you can never say never in this business."

Marshall, who had his two best seasons with Cutler in Denver, joined "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000 and was asked if his recent Twitter exchange with his former quarterback could lead to a reunion in Chicago with the Bears.

"Right now I've got a Dolphins jersey on and am pretty much locked up," Marshall said Wednesday. "But this is a crazy business and you never know what can happen. I've seen guys come in and talk about how they just bought a house and look forward to putting their kids in a school around the corner and the next day they're traded somewhere so you can never say never in this business."

During the Detroit Lions and New Orleans Saints wildcard playoff game on Jan. 7, Cutler and Marshall joked on Twitter about playing together again. When a Cutler follower tweeted that it was time for a Cutler-Marshall reunion in Chicago, Cutler tweeted "Let's do it."

Drafted by the Broncos in 2006, the duo developed immediate chemistry in their second NFL seasons -- Cutler's first full year as a starter -- in 2007. Marshall caught 102 passes for 1,325 yards and seven touchdowns that season and followed it up with 104 catches for 1,265 yards and six touchdowns in 2008.

Cutler was traded to the Bears after that season when new coach Josh McDaniels took over. Marshall followed Cutler out the door a year later, traded to the Dolphins, who gave him a four-year, $47.5 million contract extension.

Marshall said it's "painful" thinking about what might have been if he and Cutler had stayed together.

"I'm sitting next to [Cincinnati Bengals quarterback] Andy Dalton yesterday [at a Pro Bowl practice] and I was telling him, him and A.J. [Green] remind me of the young B-Marsh and Cutler," Marshall said. "It's hard to find that and sometimes it's once in a lifetime, not finding athletes like us but .... when you take two guys and put them on the field together and they have that chemistry, that's what's almost impossible to find. I can't explain it. That's why I said it's almost painful to think about.

"We'll line up there and we'll get a coverage and he will just look at me and I'll know exactly where he wants to adjust my route. You don't find that. It got to a point where coaches, they didn't know what we were doing so we'll install a whole play and they'll give us a play on the front side and put me on the back side and they'll tell us just do what you all do and just make it work. We had a lot of freedom in our offense, and we made it work and chemistry was great. It was something special."

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Dolphins receiver Brandon Marshall joined "Waddle & Silvy" to discuss playing with Jay Cutler and the potential for a reunion with his former QB in Chicago.



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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and his fiancée, reality TV star Kristin Cavallari, are expecting a baby, according to a People.com report.

"We are thrilled to announce we are expecting our first child together," the couple told People. "It's an amazing time in our life and we can't wait to meet the new addition to our growing family."

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Donovan McNabb admitted Friday that he was expecting a call from the Chicago Bears after Jay Cutler went down with a fractured thumb on Nov. 20, but that call never came and the Bears lost five of their last six to miss the playoffs.

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MINNEAPOLIS -- Jay Cutler's Most Valuable Player campaign ended here, on the frozen carpet of Whatever You Want to Call It Field, in a game that should've been sponsored by a blindfold and a bottle of Old Grand Dad.

The Bears mercifully won their season-ender, 17-13, over the hapless Minnesota Vikings to end their season at 8-8. It was their first win without Cutler in six tries. It meant absolutely nothing except avoiding a losing record. It was nearly impossible to watch.

All I got out of it was closure and another reminder how much this team misses Cutler, who didn't make the trip.

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Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, who has missed the last three games while recovering from thumb surgery, said Wednesday that there is an "outside chance" he'll return on Christmas Day to face the Green Bay Packers in Lambeau Field, but he warned Bears fans not to get their hopes up.

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Injured Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is disappointed he won't be able to play in Denver for the first time in the regular season against his former team.

Cutler, who was drafted by the Broncos in the first round of the 2006 draft, forced a trade out of Denver in 2009 when Josh McDaniels was hired as coach and reportedly tried to acquire quarterback Matt Cassel from the New England Patriots. The Bears traded two first-round picks, a third-rounder and quarterback Kyle Orton to acquire Cutler.

"It's disappointing. I was real excited to go back there and play against them," Cutler said Wednesday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "I know a lot of the guys still on that team. It was going to be fun. Obviously Josh McDaniels isn't there anymore so it's got a little bit different feel for me. But every game I miss it becomes more and more disappointing for me."

Cutler played the Broncos in Denver during the 2009 preseason, but said it would have been different this time with so many new faces.

"I had great times there. I had a lot of fun there," Cutler said. "A lot of the guys that I played with aren't there anymore so it's a whole different crew there, whole different coaches. So it has a different feel. It's not like that first preseason game when I went back there right away and knew pretty much everybody."

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Bears quarterback Jay Cutler joined "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000 and discussed a variety of subjects, including his recovery from thumb surgery, Brett Favre and going back to Denver.

Chicago Bears general manager Jerry Angelo described the idea that Brett Favre would have joined the Bears as "fantasy," but Jay Cutler said he believes Favre might have done it for the right price.

Cutler shares the same agent -- Bus Cook -- as Favre, and Cutler said on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000 on Wednesday that he talked to Cook a couple of days ago.

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