John Fox Non-Committal About Jay Cutler's Future With Bears
(CBS) Asked about the future of big-money quarterback Jay Cutler, Bears coach John Fox was non-committal speaking Wednesday ahead of the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.
Cutler's future with Chicago has been a topic of conversation after he led the NFL in turnovers in 2014 and the Bears brought in a new regime that includes Fox and general manager Ryan Pace. Cutler will have $10 million of his base salary become fully guaranteed on March 12, and the Bears are currently evaluating whether they want to keep him.
"We're not up against the deadline," Fox said when asked directly whether the Bears will proceed with Cutler as their quarterback. "My experience has always been to be still, gather the information and try to use it to make better decisions. So we're in that process. We'll keep you posted."
Perhaps raising more doubt about Cutler's future is that Chicago has met with free agent quarterback Josh McCown, who flourished for the Bears in 2013 before struggling mightily with Tampa Bay in 2014.
Cutler signed a seven-year, $126-million extension in January 2014 with $54 million guaranteed. He threw for 3,812 yards with 28 touchdowns and 18 interceptions this past season, with a quarterback rating of 88.6.
"We're not up against any deadline at this point," Fox added, speaking generally. "We're just continuing to evaluate and gather information and make good decisions."
Pace later echoed Fox's take, saying the Bears are continuing to evaluate Cutler, who is by no means set in stone as Chicago's starting quarterback.
"We're going to take our time on this," Pace said.