What's Behind the New Cutler?

Jay Cutler talked last week  about how excited he was to get back to camp.

He showed up early, talked to the media, impressed his coaches and has been generally agreeable at camp.

After a summer of working out with his teammates, even thought no coaches requested such a thing, it seems Cutler is eager to move on after the end of last season.

Is it possible that Cutler -- the perpetually apathetic -- is concerned about his image?

ESPN's First Take discussed Cutler's image and how the QB was moving in the right direction. He was even praised for ending his engagement with the reality TV star Kristin Cavallari and his apparent recommitment to football.

Here's the Grizzly Detail theory: Cutler still doesn't care if he becomes the most popular man in the NFL. He's not concerned about seeing his jersey on the back of every Bears fan, nor is he worried about picking up every random advertisement in Chicago.

But he does care about the respect of his peers, and he wasn't aware they didn't respect him until he was verbally attacked following the NFC Championship game when he was pulled for a knee injury. He does want to be a leader for the Bears, a team who has committed to him.

It's still very early to judge just where Jay is, but what he's shown so far is encouraging. If this Cutler sticks around, last year's NFC Championship game will be nothing but a memory.