LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Critics no doubt scoffed recently when quarterback Jay Cutler praised a Bears wide receiver corps led by Devin Hester, Earl Bennett, Brandon Rideau and Rashied Davis.

“We’re good to go,” Cutler said following the final OTA practice last Wednesday at Halas Hall. “We’ve got everything we need out there. I’m 100 percent comfortable. I think we’ve got more than enough to compete.”

Jay Cutler helped turn young wide receivers Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal into stars in Denver.

While some outsiders remain convinced that the Bears should try to bolster the position with a veteran, team insiders believe that Cutler will help the current receivers raise their level of play. After all, that’s exactly what the Pro Bowl quarterback did with the Denver Broncos. 

And it’s exactly what Jerry Angelo had in mind a few days after the 2008 season when he discussed the importance of stabilizing the quarterback position.

“I know that there is going to be a lot of talk about [acquiring] a No. 1 receiver,” the Bears general manager said at the time. “[But] it starts with the quarterback. It’s all about the quarterback. You don’t win because of wide receivers. You don’t win because of running backs. You win because of the quarterback.”

Cutler seemingly proved Angelo’s theory that the quarterback-makes-the-receiver the past few seasons with the Broncos. In Cutler’s first full year as a starter in 2007, Brandon Marshall, a fourth-round draft pick, caught 102 passes, the third most by a second-year player in NFL history. And then last season, Eddie Royal, a second-round choice, had 91 receptions as a rookie.

Marshall was the 14th wide receiver chosen in the 2006 draft (119th overall). The nine wideouts taken immediately before him were Travis Wilson, Derek Hagan, Brandon Williams, Maurice Stovall, Willie Reid, Brad Smith, Cory Rodgers, Jason Avant and Demetrius Williams.

Cutler isn’t the only example of a great quarterback making his receivers into elite players.

The Packers didn’t spend a first-round draft pick on a wideout until Brett Favre’s 11th season in Green Bay. But the future Hall of Famer made stars out of second-rounder Robert Ferguson, third-rounders Robert Brooks and Antonio Freeman, and seventh-rounder Donald Driver. 

Dan Marino had a similar impact on eighth-rounder Mark Clayton with the Miami Dolphins, Joe Montana helped transform 10th-rounder Dwight Clark into a hero with the San Francisco 49ers, and John Elway fueled the development of sixth-rounder Mark Jackson with the Broncos.

The Bears, of course, are hoping that the trend continues with Cutler. 

The 26-year-old, who arrived April 2 in a blockbuster trade with the Broncos, played his first three NFL seasons in Denver after arriving as the 11th pick in the 2006 draft. In 2007, he completed 63.6 percent of his passes for 3,497 yards with 20 touchdowns, 14 interceptions and an 88.1 passer rating.

Cutler was voted to the Pro Bowl in 2008 after connecting on 62.3 percent of his passes for a Broncos-record 4,526 yards with 25 TDs, 18 interceptions and an 86.0 rating. By comparison, the Bears’ single-season mark for passing yards is 3,838, set by Erik Kramer in 1995 during Ron Turner’s first stint as offensive coordinator.