Boomer Esiason ripped Jay Cutler on media conference call at the beginning of the NFL season saying:
“He’s I guess, maybe in the top 15, I guess I would put him, but Chicago is a mid tier team in the NFC and the NFC is loaded. If things go right for them, they need to stay healthy and somehow beat Green Bay which is not something they’ve been able to do with consistency since Jay got there.”
Esiason went on to say more than that (read it here)
Then Boomer Esiason doubled down on his comments on Sunday during CBS NFL Today week one:
“Quarterbacks crave consistency, that has not been the case with Jay Cutler, he reminds me of this generation’s Jeff George. That’s who he is- a great arm, a great player, but for some reason, just can’t seem to find his way.”
He also said he conducted a poll of his peers and colleagues, and they claimed there are 20 QBs in the league they’d rather have than Cutler. (read it here)
The first part maybe I could see, but the second? Not so much. 15 QBs better than Cutler is quite a stretch. 20 is just ridiculous.
But Boomer Esiason gave us a great baseline soundbite. If Cutler is a top 15 NFL QB, you can say Josh Freeman in Tampa Bay is a top 28 NFL QB, or Blaine Gabbert in Jacksonville is a top 30 NFL QB.
And after ripping Jay Cutler, Boomer Esiason will now be roasted by the Friars Club. The Roastmaster will be comedian Jeff Garlin, of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” fame. The noted Chicago Cubs fan currently stars in ABC “The Goldbergs.”
This will obviously be more good-natured and fun than what Norman Julius Esiason said about Cutty.
Will Jay be a part of the Boomer Esiason roast?
The roast will happen January 30, 2014, at a luncheon at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, just in time for NYC to host the Super Bowl. In addition to being a CBS Sports studio analyst, he also hosts WFAN’s national weekday morning radio show, “Boomer and Carton in the Morning.”
Boomer is the latest recipient of a Friars honor, joining the ranks of Jack Black, Tom Cruise, Don Rickles, and Betty White. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Boomer Esiason Foundation, as well as the Gift of Laughter Wounded Warrior Program, a project of the Friars Foundation that has responded to the long-term plight and recovery of military service members injured in Iraq and Afghanistan.
“I have been pummeled, crushed, trampled, bashed, knocked around, flattened and stepped on by even heavier weights than the Friars comedians,” said Boomer Esiason. “Whatever they have planned I can take it….they just better be prepared for my offensive.”
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An analyst for 95.7 The Fan, he also writes on Chicago sports media for Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)