JAY CUTLER FURIOUS AT REPORT THAT BRONCOS WANTED MATT CASSEL TO REPLACE HIM

The wildest story of the free agency period in the NFL so far is actually from a deal that wasn't completed. We all know by now that the Patriots traded quarterback Matt Cassel to the Chiefs for a draft pick, but did you know the deal could have be so much bigger? A trade was in the works that would have had the Patriots sending Cassel to the Broncos and the Broncos would send their starting quarterback, Jay Cutler, to the Buccaneers and the Patriots would get, probably, a couple of draft picks from Tampa.

That is obviously huge news because Cutler is one of the best, young quarterbacks in the league and trading him would be huge news. Why would the Broncos even entertain the Cassel for Cutler switch? Remember, Josh McDaniels is the new coach in Denver. He was offensive coordinator of the Patriots last year. So it shouldn't be a surprise that he would want Cassel on his team, even though probably 95 percent of the league's decision-makers would take Cutler any day of the week.

But the deal didn't go through, so no harm no foul, right? Well, wrong. According to a report on ESPN.com, Cutler is actually furious with the report and now wants out of Denver. He has asked Denver to allow him to pursue trade offers, but so far the Broncos have said no to that.

It's probably too late for the Broncos to trade Cutler because no one is available that is anywhere near his ability, but the relationship between coach and quarterback could be ruined forever. McDaniels is going to have to work overtime to regain Cutler's trust, but that may never happen. Cutler is signed for two more years, so he's stuck in Denver for a while. While McDaniels was ready to dump Culter in a heartbeat, there are a ton of teams that would jump at the chance to trade for him. The only problem is that Denver would never get any compensation that would be good enough - not even a trade with the Lions for the No. 1 draft pick would work.

Still, what a source told ESPN.com doesn't make the situation look good: "The relationship has been tarnished. I think it's beyond repair. It's like a knife to Jay's heart. It will be hard for him to get past this."

The source told ESPN.com that Chicago, Tampa Bay or Detroit would be a likely landing spot for Cutler.