Jay Cutler’s top 5 moments as a Chicago Bear

Jay Cutler will forever be a lightning rod for Bears fans, but there’s no doubt he had plenty of memorable and exciting moments in Chicago.

April 2nd will always mean something to Chicago Bears fans; the anniversary of when the team acquired its quarterback of the future when they traded for Jay Cutler from the Denver Broncos in a blockbuster deal.

The move was widely celebrated as it gave the Bears their first true franchise quarterback since Jim McMahon in the 1980s and hope that they would return to the Super Bowl with a bonafide offense.

Now, 11 years later, Cutler has since retired from the league after playing eight seasons in Chicago with mixed results. He became the Bears’ all-time leading passer in nearly every statistical category, but he struggled with turnovers at times and only led the team to the postseason once.

Cutler will forever be a lightning rod for Bears fans, but there’s no doubt he had plenty of memorable and exciting moments in Chicago. Here are my top five Jay Cutler moments as a Chicago Bear.

5) Cutler’s 42-yard TD pass to Alshon Jeffery against vs. Colts (2012)

At first glance, this may seem like an odd place to start. After all, with all the moments in his career, why choose one touchdown in the fourth quarter of a blowout victory?

This is a top-five moment for me because it’s, in my opinion, the best throw Cutler ever made as a Bear. The play counts as a 42-yard score, but in reality, the throw traveled nearly 60 yards since Cutler threw it behind the 50-yard line and into the back of the endzone. And he looked like he barely broke a sweat doing it. It’s this throw that made fans so excited to land the former Vanderbilt product.

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Bears haven’t played in divisional playoffs since 2011

The Bears haven’t played in the divisional playoffs since January 2011, when they defeated the Seahawks to advance to the NFC Championship.

The 2010s were not kind to Bears fans. Chicago made the playoffs just twice in 10 years, and won just one playoff game in that span.

As the NFL kicks off its divisional weekend, the Bears will once again be on the outside looking in, and it’s been like that for some time. The Bears haven’t played in the NFL divisional playoffs since Jan. 16, 2011, when they defeated the Seahawks 35-24 at Soldier Field to advance to the NFC Championship game.

The game wasn’t as close as the final score indicated, as the Bears jumped out to a 28-0 lead thanks to a suffocating effort by the defense and four offensive touchdowns, including three of Jay Cutler’s four touchdowns (two through the air and two on the ground).

The Bears would fall short of a Super Bowl appearance following a 21-14 loss to the Packers in the NFC Championship game.

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