Jay Cutler - Pro Football Rumors

Jay Cutler Injures Shoulder, Could Miss Rest Of Season

November 21st, 2016 at 3:52pm CST by Ben Levine

The Bears season could be going from bad to worse. Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reports that quarterback Jay Cutler suffered a shoulder injury during Sunday’s loss to the Giants and could miss the rest of the season.

Chicago’s brass spent today learning more about Cutler’s second significant injury this season, following the thumb malady that sidelined him earlier, but multiple sources informed Biggs he sustained an injury that could put his season at risk. This would leave the Bears with Matt Barkley at quarterback as they play out the string on what has been one of the franchise’s more disappointing seasons.

The Bears will learn Tuesday whether or not Cutler’s injury is season-ending, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Giants sacked Cutler four times, with Olivier Vernon slamming the 11th-year passer to the turf on the second play from scrimmage and drawing a personal foul penalty. He finished the game but committed a game-sealing turnover when he threw a pass well short of its target and into Landon Collins‘ arms.

This would be the 33-year-old Cutler’s shortest season since his rookie year if it wraps up after five games, which is how many he started when he was promoted to be the Broncos’ starter late in the 2006 slate. But this setback will also further speculation Cutler is done in the Windy City.

The eighth-year Bears signal-caller’s seven-year, $126.7MM contract runs through the 2020 season but doesn’t contain much guaranteed money after this year. Cutler’s deal would cost the Bears just $2MM in dead money if they were to move on from the polarizing passer prior to the start of the next league year. If Chicago were to keep Cutler on for his age-34 season, it would come with a cap number of $16MM. That’s down $1MM from the $17MM he’s making this season, but the franchise could well decide to move on from a quarterback that hasn’t quite delivered on expectations since that seminal 2009 trade from the Broncos.

Cutler’s lone Pro Bowl came in 2008 during his final season in Denver, and although he led Chicago to the 2010 NFC championship game, the Bears haven’t made the playoffs since. This season, he’s thrown four touchdown passes and five interceptions, completing just 59 percent of his passes.

Should Cutler be lost for the year, he’d join Brian Hoyer and Connor Shaw as QBs on the Bears’ IR.

Sam Robinson contributed to this report

Latest On Bears’ Jay Cutler

November 17th, 2016 at 6:06pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

After Chicago’s 36-10 loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday, multiple Bears told Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report via text that quarterback Jay Cutler‘s teammates have given up on him. Head coach John Fox, tight end Zach Miller and defensive lineman Akiem Hicks shot down that notion, and Cutler said Thursday that “I don’t feel like the locker room has ever [given up on me]. I’ve never felt like that in the locker room with those guys.” He also cast doubt on the veracity of the report.

“Unnamed source, I’m guessing?” Cutler asked Jeff Dickerson of ESPN.com. “The source could be a lot of people. It could be a made-up source. It could actually be guys in there. If people actually start putting their names on it, we can have a discussion about it.”

While it’s unknown if some of Cutler’s teammates have indeed quit on him, it’s likely the Bears will at the end of the season. Cutler has been somewhat disappointing since joining Chicago in a blockbuster trade with Denver in 2009, and he and the 2-7 Bears are in the midst of a nightmarish campaign. Cutler, who has only appeared in four games because of a thumb injury, has completed just 59.8 percent of his 107 passes and tossed three touchdowns against four interceptions. Backup Brian Hoyer outperformed Cutler enough in relief that it appeared he’d start if both were healthy, but it became a moot point when Hoyer landed on injured reserve Oct. 24 with a broken left arm.

Hoyer is set to become a free agent after the season, and Cutler looks primed to join him on the open market. While Cutler’s scheduled to count $16MM against the Bears’ cap next season, releasing the soon-to-be 34-year-old would leave the team with just $2MM in dead money in 2017. With the playoffs already out of reach, the draft-minded Bears are doing “extensive research” on Miami quarteback Brad Kaaya and have surely studied other possible Cutler successors as they look toward the future.

Bears Coach John Fox “Done With” Jay Cutler?

October 27th, 2016 at 3:20pm CST by Zachary Links

It has long been rumored that the Bears will be moving on from quarterback Jay Cutler after the 2016 season. According to one report, coach John Fox has been vocal about that behind the scenes. Fox told friends he was done with Cutler earlier this year, two different league sources tell Mike Mulligan of the Chicago Tribune.

Of course, the Bears didn’t have the luxury of swearing off Cutler when Brian Hoyer went down with a broken left arm. Now, Cutler is back in the driver’s seat, even though the belief is still that he won’t be back next year. For what it’s worth, Fox vehemently denied Mulligan’s report when talking to reporters today, saying that it is “absolutely not true.”

In 2014, Cutler completed a career high 66% of his passes and threw 28 touchdowns (also a career high) against 18 interceptions. Last year, however, his performance fell off as the Bears had another down year.

Bears Place Brian Hoyer On IR

October 24th, 2016 at 5:12pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Bears have placed quarterback Brian Hoyer on injured reserve, promoted offensive lineman Cornelius Edison from their practice squad and claimed tight end Daniel Brown off waivers from the Ravens, according to Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter links).

Hoyer left the Bears’ 26-10 loss to Green Bay on Thursday with a broken left arm and underwent surgery Sunday. The journeyman originally entered the Bears’ lineup when Jay Cutler went down with a sprained thumb in Week 2. Hoyer impressed in Cutler’s absence, completing more than 68 percent of his passes for 1,396 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions. His placement on IR means he won’t be eligible to come back until Week 16.

Fortunately for the Hoyer-less Bears, Cutler will be ready for their Week 8 tilt against the NFC North rival Vikings, head coach John Fox said Monday.

Brown appeared in two of the Ravens’ games this year and failed to register any receptions. As a rookie last season, he totaled six grabs in as many games. He’ll now join a Chicago tight end group that includes Zach Miller, Logan Paulsen and Ben Braunecker.

Bears Still Plan To Move On From Jay Cutler

October 21st, 2016 at 1:30pm CST by Zachary Links

After losing Brian Hoyer to a broken arm last night, the Bearss are likely to turn things back over to Jay Cutler at some point this season. It’s not a huge surprise, but one source tells Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link) that the team still intends to move on from Cutler after the year is over.

Cutler was forced out of action (or, removed himself from action) earlier this year when he suffered a sprained thumb. It sounds like Cutler may have been able to return to the lineup earlier this month, but John Fox & Co. opted to continue with Hoyer. Last night, when Hoyer was taken out of the game, Matt Barkley took the field for the first time in his NFL career.

In 2009, the Bears shipped two first-rounders, a third-rounder, and Kyle Orton to Denver to acquire Cutler. Years later, the Bears are preparing to divorce themselves from their one-time face of the franchise. In Cutler’s 99 regular-season starts for Chicago, the team has hovered around .500 (50-49), including a woeful 3-14 record at home since 2014. In total, Cutler has completed 61.9 percent of passes and thrown 151 touchdowns against 106 interceptions.

Latest On Jay Cutler, Brian Hoyer

October 9th, 2016 at 9:07am CST by Rory Parks

Jay Cutler is nearing a return from his thumb injury, but he may not have a job to come back to, according to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports. Brian Hoyer has played reasonably well in Cutler’s absence, leading the Bears to a victory over division-rival Detroit last week, and La Canfora reports that Cutler has fallen out of favor with some on the coaching staff. He writes, “There were some heated words exchanged between coaches following Cutler’s last appearance, sources said, about whether he should have been out of that game sooner, and Cutler’s status in the Bears’ locker room has long been under debate.”

This report jives with head coach John Fox‘s comments earlier this week, when he stated that Hoyer will remain the starter if he continues to play well. And with the Jaguars and Colts next on the docket for the Bears, there is a good chance that Hoyer will indeed continue to play well, at least for the next several weeks. While Hoyer will never be the type of quarterback that can take a team to the promised land, at this point he appears to be just as effective as Cutler, and he comes at a fraction of the cost.

After all, although Cutler is signed through 2020, he has no more guaranteed money left on his deal after this season, so it will be easy for Fox and GM Ryan Pace–who inherited Cutler from the prior regime–to release Cutler and begin the search for a long-term solution under center while using a quarterback like Hoyer as a placeholder.

Ian Rapoport of NFL.com lends support to La Canfora’s story, tweeting that, “This is Brian Hoyer’s job to win. If he continues to thrive, he’ll start. Door is open.” Barring some sort of unexpected turnaround, then, it appears that Cutler will not be Chicago much longer. To paraphrase a Chicago Tribune story from several weeks ago, the end of Jay Cutler’s tenure with the Bears feels as real as it ever has.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Bears To Start Brian Hoyer Over Jay Cutler?

October 3rd, 2016 at 2:46pm CST by Zachary Links

Could this be the end of the Jay Cutler era in Chicago? The Bears have have enjoyed some success with Brian Hoyer under center and coach John Fox indicated today that he will remain the starter if he continues to play well. “Anybody’s that performing well, I don’t think we’re going to be likely to change,” Fox said (Twitter link via Chris Emma of 670 The Score).

Cutler has been sidelined with a sprained thumb, leaving Hoyer to start the Bears’ last two games. The Bears lost to the Cowboys in Week 3, but they bounced back with a 17-14 victory over the Lions yesterday. Hoyer obviously isn’t the long-term answer for Chicago under center, but it’s fair to speculate that the team might not want to continue with Cutler either. Cutler is set to count for $16MM against the Bears cap in 2017 but the team could release him and be on the hook for just $2MM in dead money.

In three games (two starts), Hoyer has completed more than 69% of his passes while throwing four touchdowns against zero interceptions.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AFC Notes: Siemian, Watt, Cutler, Bengals

October 2nd, 2016 at 10:02pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Broncos tabbed Trevor Siemian as their emergency quarterback after he left Sunday’s game. Denver’s first-year starter suffered what an AC joint sprain on his non-throwing shoulder, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Siemian will undergo additional tests before the team determines the course of action.

Gary Kubiak categorized Siemian as day-to-day, per Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post (via Twitter). The Broncos, who received 170 passing yards and one touchdown from Paxton Lynch in relief, host the Falcons in Week 5.

Here’s more from the AFC as its signature game of Week 4 continues its one-sided course.

J.J. Watt underwent surgery on the same disk he injured during the spring, Rapoport reports. The Texans defensive end herniated the disk again this season despite passing the tests needed to play. Per Rapoport, Watt felt like he’d regressed back to where he was before the first back surgery this summer. He will stay in Los Angeles to rehab and be able to resume training in two months. However, the 27-year-old perennial All-Pro will still be out for the season despite the call to resume workouts during it. Rapoport adds the Texans don’t have any long-term concerns about Watt.
While Ryan Tannehill hasn’t impressed in Adam Gase‘s system, the last quarterback who did is not a target for the Dolphins. Any Jay Cutler-to-Miami talk “has never come up,” with a source close familiar with the Dolphins’ thinking telling Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald that scenario is “never happening.”
Former Dolphins DC Kevin Coyle did not draw rave reviews from his Bengals secondary charges, according to a report earlier this week. However, the Bengals — who beat the Dolphins 22-7 on Thursday night — refute the report the new Cincinnati defensive backs coach is unpopular among his players, per Paul Dehner Jr. of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The Bengals “blew off” that contention, instead pointing to the usual adjustment period associated with new coaches. The Dolphins fired Coyle midway through last season.
Titans nose tackle Al Woods will miss at least a month of action after pulling his calf muscle on Sunday, Mike Mularkey told media, including Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com. Woods is in his third season with the Titans but the first of a three-year, $10.5MM deal he signed to stay in Tennessee this offseason.

NFC North Notes: Cutler, Kalil, Lions

September 25th, 2016 at 12:29pm CST by Rory Parks

After Monday night’s ugly loss to Philadelphia, Rich Campbell of The Chicago Tribune writes that the end of Jay Cutler‘s tenure with the Bears felt as real as it ever has. Each year since former head coach Lovie Smith was fired at the end of the 2012 season, the Bears have asked themselves whether they prefer Cutler to an alternative, and each year, the answer has been yes.

However, after looking at the success that rookie Carson Wentz had against them last week, and as they prepare for rookie signal-caller Dak Prescott this week, the Bears’ quarterback calculus could change sooner rather than later. After all, it could be tough for GM Ryan Pace and head coach John Fox to continue with a 33-year-old quarterback who has a 50-49 record and only one playoff victory in seven-plus seasons in Chicago, particularly a quarterback they inherited who has no more guaranteed money left on his deal as of 2017.

The problem is that a quarterback has not been the best player on the board when the Bears have been on the clock in the past two seasons, and it would not have made sense for the team to reach for a signal-caller when they had a solid quarterback on the roster with guaranteed money still to be paid. But with no succession plan in place, the Bears may have no choice but to grab a QB in the 2017 draft and hope they can find someone to lift them out of their cycle of mediocrity.

Now let’s take a look at a few more notes from the NFC North:

With Matt Kalil on IR, many have wondered if the Vikings–who demonstrated they were “all in” on the 2016 season with the Sam Bradford trade–could deal for a replacement left tackle, like Cleveland’s Joe Thomas. However, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets that Minnesota will not make such a trade.
Earlier today, we learned there is a good chance that Adrian Peterson could return to the Vikings next year, despite much speculation to the contrary.
Lions DE Ziggy Ansah is expected to be out through at least next week as he continues to battle a high ankle sprain, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). Ansah will get a second opinion on that injury later this week.
Lions LG Laken Tomlinson has had a very disappointing start to the season, but Kyle Meinke of MLive.com believes Detroit has no other choice but to continue relying on last year’s No. 28 overall selection, as 2016 fifth-rounder Joe Dahl does not appear ready to step into the starting lineup.

Bears’ Jay Cutler “Pushing To Play” Sunday

September 22nd, 2016 at 7:00pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is angling to play on Sunday night against the Cowboys, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (Twitter link), who adds that Cutler is “politicking” coaches in an effort to suit up. However, given that the initial reports following Cutler’s thumb injury indicated that he’d miss two or three weeks, it’s probably a longshot that he could return to the field so soon.

Cutler hurt this thumb in the Bears’ season opener against the Texans. He played through the pain in Week 2 against the Eagles, but he wound up making the problem worse. Now, the Bears will use Brian Hoyer under center under Cutler is ready to take the field again.

With Hoyer starting, Chicago promoted former Eagles draft pick Matt Barkley from its practice squad to the active roster. He’ll backup Hoyer until Cutler can return, and then likely be sent back to the taxi squad.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.