Ex-Bear Urlacher: Jay Cutler 'hasn’t produced like an elite quarterback'

Former Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher saidJay Cutler is not an elite quarterback like Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers.

Urlacher said he paled in comparison to the Patriots’  Brady, the Manning brothers, the Packers’ Rodgers and the Saints’ Drew Brees.

"Financially, he is one of the elite guys in the NFL … he just hasn’t produced like an elite quarterback,” Urlacher said on Chicago radio station 87.7 FM The Game, according to the Chicago Sun Times. “You look at the Bradys, the Mannings, the Rodgers, the Brees, those guys win every year, even with no one around them. Rodgers has no offensive line. He wins. Brady has no receivers. He wins."

• Bears' Brandon Marshall on Jay Cutler: 'We're like brothers'​

Cutler, by comparison, has more talent around him, Urlacher said, but "they can’t seem to put it together, for some reason."

"I’m not sure if that’s his fault, but for some reason they just can’t figure it out," he added.

Cutler and the Bears a 3-4 this season, trailing the Packers and Detroit Lions in the NFC North, who are both 5-2.

•​ Mike Ditka criticizes Marc Trestman for Bears' rotating captains​

Cutler has the sixth-highest completion percentage in the NFL season, and is ranked ninth in yards per game. He has 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions in seven games. His seven picks are tied for third-most in the league, and 2.7 percent of his passes have been intercepted, the ninth-most in the league.

Last season was the first time Cutler had a losing record as a starter since joining the Bears. He was 5-6 and missed five games with an ankle injury.Chicago finished 8-8 and missed the playoffs for the third straight season.

- Dan Gartland