Feb. 18--John Fox had to know the Jay Cutler questions were coming.
Can Cutler be the quarterback the Chicago Bears continue to try to build around? Will Cutler be the anointed starter for Fox in his first season as head coach? Just how much commitment do the Bears currently have to Cutler with Fox as the new coach and Ryan Pace as the new general manager?
Less than seven minutes into his news conference Wednesday morning at the NFL scouting combine, Fox laughed.
"So we're going to ask this about eight different ways?" the Bears coach said. "Or what are we going to do?"
Make no mistake, the questions will persist until definitive answers are known. And at this point, Fox isn't willing to provide many. So go ahead and keep Cutler's status with the Bears as "to be determined" until further notice.
"We're not up against a deadline," Fox said. "My experience has always been to be still, gather the information and then in turn use it to make better decisions. So we're in that process. And we'll keep you posted."
Fox did confirm he has met with Cutler since his hiring as Bears coach last month. And while he wouldn't share specifics of that interaction, he did say he was eager to continue learning more about Cutler as a person.
"I think it's just getting to know him," Fox said. "I think everybody's got perceptions. But I think it's getting to know the guy. This is a relationship business. And that takes time. So I don't want to stand up here and give you a final evaluation when I'm maybe a fourth through the test. ... I don't think there's any question that there's ability and talent there. But there's a lot more that goes into it. And we're evaluating that as we speak."
