Cutler Is A Hot-Button Topic At NFL Meetings

While NFL owners spend the next three sun-splashed days discussing enhanced player safety, an expanded regular season and daunting labor issues, Bucs fans simply want to know if Jay Cutler is heading their way.

The shaky status of Denver's 25-year-old Pro Bowl quarterback serves as an intriguing backdrop for these NFL meetings at a posh resort within a long punt of the Pacific Ocean.

New Tampa Bay GM Mark Dominik and first-year coach Raheem Morris are here and they will undoubtedly run into Denver owner Pat Bowlen and rookie coach Josh McDaniels, who alienated Cutler last month by trying to swing a three-way trade for Matt Cassel that could have sent Cutler to the Bucs.

If Bowlen decides the rift between Cutler and McDaniels can't be bridged, the Broncos won't lack for suitors.

Cutler has a big arm and an equally big upside and he is expected to draw serious interest from the Bucs, Jets and Lions, who own the first pick in next month's draft. Tampa Bay yielded its second-round choice in obtaining Kellen Winslow and the Bucs could be stymied if Denver asks for an established quarterback in return.

Cutler's future in Denver will impact Chris Simms, the former Bucs quarterback who signed with the Broncos as a free agent from Tennessee.

Besides the drama surrounding Cutler, owners will consider their options for negotiating a revised labor deal with the NFL Players Association and newly elected executive director DeMaurice Smith.

The current agreement is set to expire after the 2010 season and this $7 billion industry hasn't experienced a work stoppage since 1987.

On the field, the league appears intent on reducing the number of exhibition games and adding one or two games to the regular season, perhaps linked to a new labor deal.

"There are various logistical and administrative issues that are still being analyzed, but there will be quite a bit of discussion on this initiative," league spokesman Greg Aiello said.

Most of the potential rule changes are designed to maximize player safety, including a proposal that would mandate a 15-yard penalty and a suspension for unnecessary hits to the head of a defenseless receiver, even from a forearm or shoulder.

"There's been an awful lot of hits in the last couple of years that have been legal but have been awful tough on receivers," said Falcons president Rich McKay, co-chairman of the Competition Committee.

Another hot-button topic involves quarterback fumbles and making those miscues more eligible for replay review.

Also on the agenda is the idea of re-seeding the draft order for the final 12 choices based on when playoff teams are eliminated. Under the current system, picks 21-30 are slotted based on regular-season record.