INDIANAPOLIS -- John Fox had the opportunity to calm the choppy waters surrounding Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler on Wednesday.
He just chose not to.
Amid a week during which hope springs eternal and coaches are almost blindly optimistic, Fox didn't take the bait and get himself quoted as saying Cutler would be the future at quarterback.
"Like I said, we're not up against a deadline," Fox said. "My experience has always been that you need to gather the information and in turn you usually make better decisions. We're in that process and we'll keep you posted."
New general manager Ryan Pace was equally lukewarm, opting not to say that Cutler was the starter for 2015.
Fox also admitted to meeting with Josh McCown, who is arguably the best free-agent quarterback on the market. His praise of Cutler's former backup alone speaks volumes.
"There's obviously interest, or we probably wouldn't have met with him. But he's, again, a guy that's had opportunities as a starter in this league. He's served as a backup. He's the right kinda guy, I know from my perspective, that you want on your football team. So we'll see where it goes. He's got relationships with a lot of people in this league -- you know they have high opinions of him. We'll see where that goes."
Fox was asked about Marshall's plans to fly to New York every Tuesday in order to tape Inside the NFL for Showtime. Organizational frustration with Marshall is likely the No. 2 issue on the docket to clear up this offseason.
Again, though, Fox only answered the question with a generality about how he hopes everyone is committed to football.
Having talent on a roster is not a bad thing in February, but not knowing -- or not being able to admit -- what will happen with two of your pillars on offense is a scary thing. Fox and Pace certainly have their work cut out for them this week.
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