Chicago Bears fans won't have to wait for the regular season to hear Jay Cutler analyze games.
Kevin Burkhardt, who will be calling games alongside Cutler and Charles Davis in FOX's No. 2 NFL broadcasting crew, told Adam Schein on *Mad Dog Sports Radio*Â on Friday the group's first game will be the Bears vs. Titans tilt in Tennessee on Sunday, Aug. 27, during the second week of the preseason. Cutler announced Friday he has agreed to a broadcasting deal with FOX.
In his first game, Cutler gets to analyze a team he knows inside and out, having played in Chicago the past eight seasons. The pairing should make for an interesting sideshow. Will Cutler rip his former teammates and coaches? Will he come out of the gate with kid gloves?
While some scoff at Cutler joining the TV world given his gruff approach to the media during his professional career, the quarterback could surprise. Cutler is intelligent, well-spoken when he wants to be, and his unvarnished attitude could translate well to television.
"I think the advantages far outweigh the negatives and the advantages are he knows his team well," Davis said of Cutler calling a Bears game in his debut on Friday's Up to the Minute Live. "He knows what they like to do. He knows their scheme. He understands what they're to trying to accomplish, in terms of preseason, what they need to add in order to get better. I would dare say that he's going to have an encyclopedia of (info) for just about everyone in the league.
"Think about how long Jay's played. Think of the number of teams he's played against. Quarterbacks keep a book on not just their opponents, but the coordinators, the coaches they work against."
The big issue for Cutler in the booth could be whether he'll pussyfoot around criticizing players and coaches as he eyes a possible return to the sidelines if an NFL team calls him following an injury. We've seen many ex-players and coaches soft-pedal the criticism immediately after joining the media world.
Cutler will get his first opportunity to prove he's all-in on providing poignant analysis right off the bat by breaking down his former team.
