To say that DeAngelo Hall got the best of Jay Cutler in yesterday's game is a bit of an understatement. Hall tied the NFL record with four interceptions, all coming in the second half. I would think that the lesson Cutler would take away from this game is, "Maybe don't throw it towards 23 so much," but I would be wrong.
Jay Cutler had this to say during his press conference after the game:
"I've played against him before, there's no reason to shy away from him. I mean, that's hard for me to say throwing four picks at a guy. But I'd still, if we had to play them tomorrow I'd go at him every time, if we could."
Really, Jay? I have a pretty good idea how that next game might go down. My predictions for the results of Cutler's next four pass attempts directed towards DeAngelo Hall after the jump.
- First Pass: A deep fifteen yard out to Devin Hester who, unaware of the play call, is running a post. Cutler hits Hall between the two and the three and Hall takes it back to the house.
- Second Pass: Cutler takes the snap, drops back and sees Hester running free down the sideline. He starts his motion, but right before he is about to deliver the pass the thought of Hall making another pick enters his mind. He's paralyzed with fear. "I know it looks like Hester is open but Hall has to be there somewhere, right? I mean, he's gotten to so many of my passes recently I can't imagine he's just not going to be involved in this play." As a result his delivery slows. Plenty of time for Orakpo to get around the edge and put a hit on Cutler. The ball pops into the air and lands right in the hands of Hall who had been coming on a corner blitz. He's already in the backfield, so he runs this one back.
- Third Pass: Hall, still out of breath from his last return, is on the sideline getting some oxygen. Cutler, stubborn as he appears to be, won't let anything derail his personal vendetta against Hall; not even the Redskins defensive substitution pattern. What appears to be a massive overthrow towards the Redskins sideline is actually Cutler trying to squeeze one in to the member of the Bears' ground crew standing behind Hall. Hall still gets his hands on the ball. It's not an official interception, but it means basically the same thing.
- Fourth Pass: Cutler, now worked into a rage of equal parts confusion and frustration, tries to throw an egg at the Redskins team bus as it rolls out of Soldier Field. Hall sees Cutler out of the corner of his eye and makes a break on the throw. He leaps secret-service style in front of the bus to take the egg right in the chest. It's sticky and uncomfortable, but it's a very proud kind of sticky and uncomfortable.
UPDATE: DeAngelo Hall responded to Cutler on Sportscenter on Monday morning, via Dan Steinberg.
"You know what man, Jay's a little bit, he don't really understand, I guess, the game, the game of football," Hall said on Monday. "And in the game of football, you're gonna see guys several times in their career. You know, he completed four passes against me when I was out in Oakland and he was in Denver on a Monday Night Football game, and I knew leading up to the game he was still feeling good about that. He made some smart, snide comments about that after that game, so I knew definitely he was gonna try to come out there and try me, and it didn't work for him."