Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk, who won a Super Bowl with Mike Martz in St. Louis, said Thursday it's not surprising Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler had minor flare-up with his offensive coordinator.
An on-field camera showed Cutler looking perturbed after getting the call for a second-down play with 49 seconds left in the first half of the Bears' 39-10 victory over Minnesota. After the team broke the huddle, Cutler looked toward the sideline, and a microphone caught him saying what appears to be "... f--- him." It's been widely speculated Cutler was referring to Martz.
"Is it possible that they are going to be on the same page every game? Probably not," Faulk said on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "Your quarterback and offensive coordinator aren't always going to see eye to eye on the plays that are called or the read on the play.
"I'm just happy that you guys have something to talk about besides that defense giving up a big play. If I'm in the Bears' locker room, I'm happy."
Martz said Wednesday that it wasn't a big deal.
"Well, if it was at me, that's probably the nicest thing that [a] player has ever said to me during the game," Martz quipped. "Hey, you've got to understand that during the course of a game, a lot of things get said. It's a very strong, very competitive environment. That stuff is ... that's not an issue really; just part of the deal. During a game, a lot of things get said, trust me, by everybody. So that's not an issue."
Faulk said he never had such a moment with Martz.
"No, I never needed to have that moment," he said. "Mike and I had such a great relationship that when he called a play, I understood why he called the play. He's great at why he calls certain things, you just have to ask.
"Maybe Jay was just upset with the play or something else. Martz is like this, you can throw a touchdown and if you don't go through your progressions and throw it to the guy that was open and he will question you. He will say, 'Forte was open in the flat, why did you throw the deep ball'?
Faulk doesn't see a rift between Cutler and Martz as being the Bears' main problem.
"It's all about the offensive line," Faulk said. "You're only as good as your offensive line. The guys that they put out there, they're doing the best they can. I think Martz is getting as much as he can out of those guys, and I think Mike Tice is doing all he can. Sad to say, I think it's just a lack of talent on the offensive line."
Many believe Martz is trying to run the same "Greatest Show On Turf" offense that led the Rams to two Super Bowl berths, including one win. But Faulk doesn't see it.
"I mean just with the players that they have, you have to be realistic and understand the players that we had in St. Louis," Faulk said. "By no means is Martz trying to run that offense here. He understands what he has and knows the elements in which they play in. The basics of what we did, I watch and see it in their offense, but for the most part he doesn't dare get as risky with the protections he asks of the offensive line or of the play calling with Jay or reads that he would ask Kurt or Marc to make."