Bears getting a QB doubles down Packers draft

So the Bears have a legit QB in Jay Culter. Sure he owns a 17-20 career record, but his stats and his play shows he's got a better arm than Orton. The price was high but the chances that the Cutler gets hurt or underperforms are probably less than than mid-first round picks ending up being of the ilk of Ahmad Carroll or Justin Harrell. Culter could be a thorn in the Packers' side as long as Favre was in the Bears.

One of the unintended consequences of giving up on Brett Favre a year before Brett Favre himself through in the towel was to give Bus Cook some experience extricating unhappy and unwanted QBs from their contracts. Comments on Sportsbubbler and the J/S Packer Plus site show that some Packer fans now deplore Cook more than the agent we all use to agree was Jerk Agent #1, Drew Rosenhaus. How long was it that peace & harmony reigned between Cook, Favre, and the Packer management?

Am I saying that the Bears wouldn't have Culter if Favre hadn't been retired? Of course not. Heck, who knows what Aaron Rodgers would have done if he didn't play last year? Maybe he would have hired a Rosenhaus type and made a run for it? What really matters is that Ted Thompson must hit on some of his high draft picks or any of his draft picks (past, present, and fewture) and put some distance between the Packers and the Bears & Vikings.

However, just because there is no provable causation between the Favre and Cutler trades, it's a fact that Bus Cook had to have acquired some confidence in his ability to move a star QB. There is no denying the law of unintended consequences. Less the Packers fans acquire the former organizational attitude toward QBs of the Bears, let's review the lesson of Jay Cutler and other NFL star QBs. The chances of talks leaking is too great to risk losing a top QB. Sure, I'd love to trade Aaron Rodgers to the Vikings for their next 10 drafts, but only Ditkas and McMillians do that, so why risk disaster? I am glad this has never happened to the Packers in recent history and hope that continues.

Culter cost the Bears 1st rounders this year (#18), next year's 3rd rounder. They will need to hit on a Greg Jennings type #2 pick to fully capitalize. From the Bear's perspective, it's the move they should have made years ago while their defense was still young and receiving corps slightly more serviceable. The Vikings are still hoping they will have a good enough QB.

So while it's likely a good deal for the Bears, but there is a feeling here in Chicago that it's probably too late... "the defense is too old and maybe too rich to be hungry... but maybe not... wait until football season and we will see... how bout those Cub / Sox?" It has the "fresh air" feel to it that should help the Bears a lot. Yet, to keep things in perspective Culter's QB rating last year, his best so far ranked #23 in the NFL. Aaron Rodgers was #12. Who will be better in the long run is clearly an open question.

Quantitatively, the Bears and the Vikings now have to hit more often on their remaining draft picks and the Packers need to hit too but they can afford a few misses. The stakes on the Packers' next few draft, or more accurately their on going player development efforts, have been exponentially raised by these two trades. Love or hate the current GM, if you care about the Packers next ten years or so, we better hope for the best.

If the Packers hold serve in the draft, meaning that they get a few very good starters, a few servicable players, and only a few busts. The Packers could be competative in 2009-10 and pull ahead as the impact of the lost draft choices begin to be more accutely felt in Chicago and Minnesota.