CLEVELAND – A shaky left side of the offensive line and a starting quarterback in Jay Cutler who hasn’t finished a full season from post to post the past two years?
Third string quarterback Josh McCown has to be a shoe-in to make the 53-man roster when final cuts are made. Has to be, right?
Welcome to the most anxious next 24 hours of Bears camp.
“It’s a crazy game, crazy day, so you never know,” McCown said after the 28-20 win over the Browns on Thursday. “I’ll be thankfully waiting. My comfort is knowing that God will put me where he wants me to be. That’s where my trust is. If I’m supposed to be here then great. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll be extremely sad because of these guys, [quarterbacks Jason Campbell and Jay Cutler]. These guys are some of the best guys I’ve ever worked with. Jeremy Bates is one of the best quarterback coaches I’ve ever worked with, so that combination together, and you feel like we’re building something special. It would make me sad to know that I won’t be a part of it.
“But I understand and trust [GM Phil Emery] and Lovie [Smith] that they’re going to make the decisions that they feel are best for the team. You can’t say you trust them all the time, and then when they make a decision that’s not in your favor all of a sudden ‘They’re bad.’ I trust them, and I hope with everything it works out for me.”
McCown was solid in making a final statement, as the quarterback played the entire game, going 20-for-29 for 157 yards and threw two touchdowns with an interception. And even with McCown acting uneasy, the Bears would leave a wake of some serious head-shaking if they cut the veteran quarterback.
The one decision McCown is glad he doesn’t have to make? The battle between running backs Armando Allen and Lorenzo Booker.
The two went head-to-head in the final preseason game, as Allen carried the ball 16 times for 83 yards, caught five balls for 51 yards and a touchdown, and even had a strip on the punting team. Booker had 15 carries for 81 yards, catching four passes for 16 yards.
“I don’t want to be making that call, you know,” McCown said. “They both played really well. I played with ‘Book’ in the UFL a couple of years ago, so I’ve seen him play, I know he’s a good player. Armando, I played with him at the end of last year. Both are just good running backs. We’ll see what happens. I’m glad I’m not the guy making that call. Both really good players.”
