Is that your Final Answer?

Until something concrete happens, this will be my final say on Bronco's QB Jay Cutler. At this point, I am going to move forward with the idea that the Lions are entering the draft with their current complement of players and picks.

First off, long weekend with sick kids. I'm beat, but I love the great back and forth in the comments going on last story -- if you haven't read them, take the time. Well worth it!

I'm actually very close to 5BakerStreet (glad to see your comment -- always insightful!) in where I stand on trading for Cutler.

I DO NOT want Jay Cutler if the Lions end up with a net loss of more than one 1st through 3rd round pick. Period.

Both scenarios I am in favor of --

1. Cutler for any ONE: 1,20, OR 33
2. Cutler and 12 for 1 and 20 (lose 1 and 20, gain 12 and cutler)

-- amount to a net loss of one draft pick.

I am willing to say yes, a 25 year old pro-bowl QB is building with youth IF you only give up one guy for him. For instance, Cutler at one overall or Stafford? Cutler is the better gamble.
Where I don't want to see it go is Cutler at 1...20...65...and maybe a pick next year which is what some delusional people are suggesting.

If that is the asking price, Mayhew should tell them to stick it up their Millen and keep the picks. I can see Cutler being worth more to the Lions in the long run than any one guy in this draft. But any 2, 3, 4? NO WAY!

IF the Lions were a team with few holes a QB away, then yes - why not? But a team with more holes than Swiss cheese? With more openings than people in line for unemployment in Michigan? Nope. Not for the Lions.

Even the other teams supposedly bidding -- like Tampa Bay -- are not whom I would expect Cutler to help the most. Tampa Bay, for instance, is just starting a rebuild as big as the Lions are with a rookie GM and Coach (who's never even been a coordinator). Yet, they gave up a 2nd and something else for Winslow -- a beat up, oft injured TE. Now they want to give up more picks for a QB?

How about a line? How about the fact you have about 3 starters left on your defense? And this is TAMPA, not Detroit! They are chillin like Millen down there based on their ifseason moves -- and my gut says they are not in for a bright near future down there...

Meanwhile, back here in Detroit? As long as Mr. Mayhew and Mr. Lewand remember that Matt Millen is no longer running the Lions, and not grossly overpaying includes trading for QB's -- we will be fine. Stick with your plan gentlemen, it's looking good so far.

I know that there will be tons of Lions fans dreaming of a great young QB from now til Cutler's situation is settled. I will not be one of them. If dreaming of a QB means dreaming of a gutted team for an additional year, then you can count me out.

And that is my final answer.

How Much for Cutler-y?

When my wife and I got married, we went out and put together a registry of items. There was a scanner we would take around the store, and when you scanned the UPC code on an item it would add it to your registry so people would know what to buy you. Want more than one? Scan it multiple times!

There is a sense of practicality to this. More than one person may want to get you, for instance, kitchen utensils, dishes, serving bowls, etc. But what to get? If you didn't have a registry, you were likely to either have a hodge-podge of different sets of dishes, 5 different knife sets, 6 coffee makers and lord knows how many salt and pepper shakers. The registry allowed us to have a unified plan, and save lots of time trying to take things back and then go shopping again or getting a bunch of items that didn't go together.

The other consideration (for us, at least) was price. We wanted to be sure the set we were putting together was affordable for us (to add to and replace items later) and for our wedding guests (they only had so much money to spend on us, after all.)

If it's not apparent by now, it should be, that Martin Mayhew has sat down with Jim Schwartz and put together a registry of what they need. Unfortunately, the NFL store has very limited stocks and supplies, so you often have to make do until the right crockery that matches your set comes in. Maybe you have to settle for a complementary color versus the exact pattern you’re looking for.

In FA thus far, Mayhew has done a lot of shopping at the second hand stores trying to pick up complementary pieces, or older pieces that match his pattern pretty well, but are kind of worn and will need to be replaced soon. He’s not fooling himself – the Lions know their team resembles the kitchen of a college student who took bits and pieces of various sets, resale shops, and garage sales to stock his apartment versus the more refined and planned décor of my home, for instance.

The draft is where Mayhew gets to go to the store, and pick out what he needs to start building his kitchen. Knives, of course, are a good place to start. They are like the QB of the kitchen. You don’t really need to have a lot of different knives – but you need at least one really good set of cutlery.

But with a set of ginsu-class “Cutler”y possibly available, the question becomes: how much is it worth? You already have a set of Culpepper and a Stanton. The Henson isn’t all that, but you can easily pick up a very budget friendly Leftwich to round out your cutting utensils for now. If you buy the “Cutler”y though, the price just may be so much that you would have to forsake 2 or 3 place settings to get it because of the cost.

Is it worth it?

Is that shiny “Cutler”y so much better than your current knife set, or one you can get in the draft, that it’s worth that much? Sadly, I would have to say no. What good is a really good knife if you don’t have a place setting to put the food on to eat it?

The “bidding” for Jay Cutler is supposedly going to start at 2 first rounder draft picks. If that is the case, bid up Tampa Bay and whomever and drop out. Mayhew hasn’t been overspending on anyone if FA and trades, and he should extend that to Cutler. The Lions need those 2 first round picks, as well as the additional 3^rd or #2 next year, to add starters (place settings) to their team!

If the Lions were a QB away (say Minnesota if they weren’t in denial about Tavaris Jackson) then I would say go for it. A team’s success can change how it looks at the draft. The more holes a team has, the more it is about quantity of draft picks to fill multiple needs. Teams with fewer holes are more about specific players at specific positions to tweak or improve their already successful team. Jay Cutler, at multiple firsts, would fall into that category for me.

Denver is the one who created this mess, and Detroit has all the leverage in the world. They would be fine to sit back and roll with the picks and players they have. Cutler has put Denver in a position of weakness on this, and everyone knows it. They may keep a disgruntled QB this year and “deal with it” but certainly not 2 or 3. Not when they can get some value for him.

My take: One pick, and one pick only. Be it #1 overall, or #20, or #33. But one and only one of those picks. If a trade must involve multiple picks (and better value for the Lions, IMO) then trade #1 and #20 for Cutler and #12.

I would be happy with either of those. That’s it. Anything else is over-paying. The Lions have a dinner party for 22 coming up in the fall – and right now they are short quite a few place settings. They can’t afford to short those for one really nice knife.