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Lovie: Cutler 'Was Outstanding' In Playoff Debut

In his fifth year in the NFL, Jay Cutler made his playoff debut with a chance to play the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship on the line.

There were some people who said that Cutler wasn't a "winner." And that he was nothing but a talented quarterback who couldn't put together a winning season, the comparisons to Jeff George began to surface. Over the course of the season Cutler has pretty much dispelled all of those criticisms.

On Sunday, Cutler faced another opportunity to have his critics either silenced or potentially add fuel to their fire. Not only did Cutler lead the Chicago Bears passed the Seattle Seahawks, but he did so in impressive fashion.

"Of course it starts with Jay Cutler," Lovie Smith said after the Bears' 35-24 victory. "Whether it's running the football or just making the different throws that we ask him to do, he was outstanding today."

Cutler was 15/28, for 274 yards. He threw for two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also chipped in 43 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns on eight rushes. While Cutler is no Michael Vick, we've seen him use his feet all season to make plays and move the chains.

If Cutler continues to play the way he has all season, and in his first playoff game, his critics will soon have nothing else to criticize.

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