Jay Cutler admitted he hasn't had much fun dating since his split with Kristin Cavallari ... explaining that getting back into the scene has been "hard as hell."
The ex-NFL star made the revelation on his "Uncut with Jay Cutler" podcast this week ... saying straight-up that "meeting people is hard."
The 38-year-old was comparing dating to his former Chicago Bears team finding a new quarterback ... when he broke off on a tangent about how searching for love again has not been easy.
"I think finding out what people really, really want from you, I think that's probably an issue," Cutler said when he was asked why it's been tough.