The Chicago Bears have let veteran quarterback Jay Cutler go. He reportedly asked for and was granted the release on Thursday morning, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Bears are releasing QB Jay Cutler, per sources. Cutler asked for and was granted his release this morning. Now a free agent.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 9, 2017
This news does not come as much of a shock considering the Bears are expected to finalize a three-year deal with quarterback Mike Glennon.
Cutler was placed on the trade block in February and has not drawn any interest. To the contrary, the Arizona Cardinals and New York Jets recently expressed their disinterest in the 33 year-old signal caller.
Cutler will now be able to explore free agency on his own unless he chooses to retire, which is something he recently threw out as an option.
The veteran quarterback spent eight seasons with the Bears after being traded from the Denver Broncos in 2009. That was actually the last year Cutler played a complete 16-game season.
Last season marked Cutler’s worst to date. Due to various injuries he played in only five games.
Cutler was signed to a seven-year, $125.7 million deal in 2014 that would have taken him through the 2020 season.
Cutler’s early release will only cost the Bears $2 million in dead cap. This year was definitely the one to call it quits with the embattled signal caller considering the team won’t take too much of a cap hit with that number.
We shall see where Cutler’s journey takes in him in the coming weeks.
Was fun while it lasted amigo, I'd give my leg for this dude…. but I'm excited to see what happens next pic.twitter.com/zIe92kcXtQ
— kyle (@Ky1eLong) March 9, 2017