Four Teams Paying Dearly For Extending Bad Deals With Quarterbacks

When Jay Cutler, Andy Dalton and Colin Kaepernick signed long-term deals this summer, many questioned the sanity behind the decisions, which now seem justified considering the seasons each has had.

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When Jay Cutler, Andy Dalton, Colin Kaepernick and Alex Smith were each signed to long-term extensions this past offseason, the reaction was akin to seeing shark fins peeking out of the water, yet the Chicago Bears, Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs, respectively, were too busy to ignore them.

Chomp….

With the Bears and 49ers all but gone from playoff contention, the Chiefs on the playoff ropes and the Bengals facing an uphill battle with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North, the lack of wisdom of the signings are in clear view, as a piece from The Big Lead’s Jason McIntyre focuses on.

Perhaps the biggest reasons the four teams went all-in on locking up their quarterbacks was a sense of not knowing what laid ahead if they chose not to do so. ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, who worked in the front office of the Philadelphia Eagles, believes it was that level of fear that resulted in the quartet receiving deals worth a combined $416 million.

"“There’s only going to be so many Andrew Lucks and John Elways,” said Riddick. “Being a quarterback at the highest level in the NFL? Let’s face it, that s**t is hard to do. And if you don’t have the next Tom Brady, or haven’t made a trade for the next Drew Brees, what’s the alternative? Well, you can still win in the NFL if you get competent QB play and he’s not turning the ball over.”"

The question heading into this offseason will be if anyone else has seen the fins before it’s too late.

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