Gase: Cutler didn’t delay retirement to sit
Davie, Fla. — New Miami Dolphins quarterback Jay Cutler won't play in the team's exhibition opener Thursday, but look for him to be starting soon enough.
"He didn't come out of retirement to stand on the sideline," coach Adam Gase said.
Cutler missed Monday's practice because it took place as he landed in South Florida to sign a $10 million, one-year contract. The 34-year-old Cutler decided to delay the start of his network TV career for the chance to replace Ryan Tannehill and be reunited with Gase, his former offensive coordinator with the Chicago Bears.
"A situation like this doesn't come along very often," said Cutler, wearing a polo shirt bearing the Dolphins logo. "I know Adam very well; I know the system. And you're talking about a playoff team with a lot of really, really good players and a lot of potential."
Cutler is expected to leapfrog longtime Dolphins backup Matt Moore for the starting job while Tannehill remains out with a left knee injury that likely will sideline him for the entire season.
Gase reached out to Cutler shortly after Tannehill was hurt Thursday and said the former Bear needed no persuading to launch a comeback. But Cutler likened the conversations with Gase to college recruiting, saying the decision to return was difficult.
He parted with the Bears in March after eight seasons, and was then hired by Fox as an analyst to work in its No. 2 NFL broadcast booth.
"The last four months I've been in a different mindset, getting ready for the Fox deal," Cutler said. "I was pretty good with where I was in my life; I was around the kids a lot and felt pretty content. So I went back and forth on this. My wife talked me into it more than anybody else. ... I think she got tired of me being around the house."
In 2015, Cutler had a career-best quarterback rating while with Gase, who then joined the Dolphins. What will Cutler's learning curve be with the offensive scheme?
"I'm pretty sure he's already got it," Gase said. "He's good."
Ramping up Cutler's arm strength may take longer, Gase said.
"I'm sure he wasn't in the backyard throwing a hundred balls a day," the coach said.
Cutler said his two sons and pickup basketball games at his alma mater, Vanderbilt, helped him stay in shape. He missed time last year with a sprained right thumb and a labrum injury that required season-ending right shoulder surgery in December, but said he's healthy now and confident his arm will be fine.
"It'll come back pretty quickly," Cutler said. "I'm not worried about the throwing part. Getting used to the guys and the more detailed stuff, that's what we're going to have to hit the fast-forward button on."
Official: Landry investigated for possible battery
Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jarvis Landry is being investigated for possible domestic battery, officials said Monday, an allegation the player's girlfriend called a fabrication.
A spokesman for the Broward County State Attorney's office said Monday in an email the allegations were under review and no decision has been made on whether Landry will be charged.
The case was recently referred to prosecutors by the Fort Lauderdale Police Department. A heavily-redacted police report is dated April 1, but Landry's girlfriend said in a statement released by his sports management firm the incident occurred in March.
Estrella Cerqueira, who is the mother of Landry's daughter, said in the statement that the couple had a "vocal disagreement" but that she never felt physical threatened and that nothing violent took place. She said someone else she did not identify called police.
"I would like to make it very clear that Jarvis would never, ever do anything to harm me or anyone else," Cerqueira said.
"Jarvis and I are happily raising our beautiful daughter and I would like to make a plea to the media that they refrain from spreading this completely false story," she added.
Broward County court records, however, show Cerqueira has filed a paternity suit against Landry and she acknowledged in the statement that has caused emotional strain between them.
"Yes, we are going through a civil family court case and emotions are high," she said.
Dolphins coach Adam Gase says the team is aware of the situation and that "proper steps" have been taken, although he did not specify what he meant.
Bills sign Boldin to provide experience at receiver spot
Sammy Watkins and the Buffalo Bills receivers aren't as young and untested now that Anquan Boldin is with the group. Boldin returns for a 15th NFL season after signing a contract with the Bills on Monday. The move provides the team leadership, production and an instant boost in credibility to what had been a patchwork position. The 36-year-old is a three-time Pro Bowl selection, was the NFL's 2015 Walter Payton Man of the Year award winner and ranks in the top 25 among several career categories. “The great thing about Anquan is what he brings on the field and off the field,” first-time general manager Brandon Beane said. “I think our receiving room is fairly young still. And I think not only is he going to help those guys show what a pro's pro and what it takes on the field (but also) in the meeting rooms, training room.”