Bench Jeff Cutler?

Good article from ESPN's Gene Wojciechowski where he brings up some good points regarding Jeff Cutler.

If he were any other quarterback, Jay Cutler would have been benched by now.

But when you've invested what the Chicago Bears have invested in him -- not much, just the franchise's future -- then you're stuck with the human interception machine.

And here's what the Bears have to show for it: a 4-5 record, 17 league-leading Cutler interceptions and almost zero chance of reaching the playoffs.

Cutler was 17-20 as a starter for the Denver Broncos before he whined his way to a trade. He's sub-.500 with the Bears. He never led the Broncos to the postseason, and it doesn't look like he'll get the Bears there this year. So maybe none of his win-loss numbers are a coincidence.

Yet Cutler will be the starting quarterback when the Bears face the Eagles at Soldier Field next Sunday night. Uh-oh. Cutler's worst games as a Bear have come at night: four interceptions against Green Bay, two against Atlanta, five against San Francisco. All losses, by the way.

Five of Cutler's 17 interceptions this season have come inside the 20-yard line. The Bears can't afford to have a quarterback who keeps giving away red zone points. The Bears have no margin of error left in their season. They can't afford to keep playing a quarterback who thinks arm strength can overcome triple coverage and who keeps giving away red zone points. Five of Cutler's 17 interceptions have come inside the 20. If you're keeping count -- and The Denver Post's Mike Klis has done exactly that -- Cutler has thrown a combined eight red zone interceptions in his past 14 games.

If Cutler struggles again, Smith needs to pull him. For a series. A quarter. A half. The rest of the game. Whatever. But he has to do something. Insanity? No -- it's a necessity.

Last month, Smith benched Pro Bowl defensive tackle Tommie Harris against Cincinnati. Cornerback Nathan Vasher lost his starting job earlier in the season. Linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer lost his starting job last season. Quarterback Rex Grossman lost his job early in the 2007 season. Why shouldn't Cutler be held to the same performance standards?

I know Cutler is the franchise quarterback. I know backup Caleb Hanie has a grand total of one NFL completion for 3 yards. But if Smith wants to send a message that everyone, including Cutler, is accountable for his play, he has to do more than blather on about it in his postgame monotone-athon.

Cutler has two four-plus-interception games this season. He has four games with two or more interceptions. He's been penalized and later fined for chirping at officials. And you don't need Rosetta Stone learning software to read his body language. Cutler has cornered the market on brooding.

If New York Yankees starter CC Sabathia stinks it up, he gets pulled. If Chicago Blackhawks goalie Cristobal Huet stinks it up, he gets pulled. If Cutler stinks it up, he gets a contract extension. And the Bears get another loss.

It's time for Cutler to quit imitating Brady Quinn. And if he doesn't, if he keeps throwing more game-killing interceptions, then it's time for Smith to quit acting like a company man.

Cutler isn't going anywhere. Neither is Smith, who has $11 million and two years left on his contract extension. The Bears could easily afford to fire him, but they won't. That's because team president Ted Phillips has a history of squeezing pennies so hard that Abe Lincoln needs a respirator.

So Smith has a decision to make. He can keep Cutler in the lineup, no matter how many times Cutler throws to the wrong team. Or he can risk angering Cutler by calling him out or pulling him out -- even for just one attention-getting play. And he risks angering team management, which is married to Cutler for better or worse.

You'll get your answer the next time Cutler ends another Bears drive with an interception. But I'm guessing nothing changes. Cutler will stay on the field.

Smith's double standard will stay there, too.

Chicago faces Philly in a nationally televised Sunday night game. Cutler has had his worst games on national tv at night. The game will be at home and the Eagles have an attacking defense that forces turnovers. It will be interesting to see what happens if Cutler throws a couple of early picks. The crowd will be on him and you can bet the Al and Cris will be talking about his performance. It will be a story line going into the game.