ESPN.com is reporting that the Chicago Bears have traded their first round picks in 2009 and 2010 along with Kyle Orton to Denver to acquire Jay Cutler.

Initial reaction: Though he’s more of a prima donna off the field than Orton, Cutler is an upgrade on the field. It will be interesting to see what the Bears lack of talent at wide receiver – Devin Hester and … Rashied Davis (?) I think would be the starters right now. But Cutler will have the benefit of Matt Forte at running back. By the end of last season the Broncos were splitting time in the backfield between an Arena League reject and the guy that cleans the toilets.

The Bears also have tight ends Desmond Clark and Greg Olsen, both of whom are decent in the passing game.

It blew me away that the Minnesota Vikings, who would seem to be improved quarterback play away from being a true Super Bowl contender, didn’t put more of an effort into trading for Cutler – and this is part of the reason why. The NFC North just got more interesting – Cutler definitely improves the offense of a team that is two years removed from the Super Bowl and missed winning the division by a game in 2008.

For the Broncos, this is a setback. It would seem as though Chris Simms and Orton would compete for the quarterback position. Neither are horrible, but neither are as good as Cutler, who threw for 4,200 yards and 25 touchdowns last season.

I suspect this also negatively affects wideouts Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal, especially if Denver doesn’t get improved running back play from at least one of the backs that was hurt most of the 2008 season.

Overall, my initial thoughts are that the fantasy player that benefits the most from this is Forte, as Cutler will maximize the passing game in Chicago enough to open some lanes for the running game. Beyond that, I think the trade does more to hurt the skill players surrounding each team’s new quarterback than to help.

We’ll have more thoughts on this going forward as more details emerge. Thanks to Brad for bringing it to our attention.

ADD: Foxsports.com is reporting that the Bears get the Broncos 5th as well as Cutler this year, while the Broncos get a 3rd this year in addition to the two 1sts and Orton.