Read More: Josh McCown (QB – CHI), Jay Cutler (QB – CHI), Chicago Bears, Oakland Raiders, Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks

It may be seen by many Chicago Bears fans as “too little, too late,” but the move has been made: The Bears announced on Wednesday that Josh McCown will in Week 16 when the team takes on the Green Bay Packers on Christmas night. In his four starts as Jay Cutler’s replacement, Hanie threw three touchdowns to nine interceptions, completed only 50% of his passes and compiled a dismal overall quarterback rating of 41.8.

McCown, who was signed as a free agent by the Bears as insurance after Cutler’s injury, had not thrown a pass in the NFL since 2009 before relieving Hanie late in last week’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks. He threw two passes vs. Seattle on Sunday, one of which was intercepted.

In 2007, McCown appeared in nine games for the Oakland Raiders, throwing 10 touchdowns to 11 interceptions, compiling a QB rating of 69.4.

For updates, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more in-depth coverage of this week’s game, visit Bears Blog Windy City Gridiron and Packers blog Acme Packing Company. For more from around the NFL, head over to SB Nation’s NFL news hub.

Read More: Jay Cutler (QB – CHI), Devin Hester (WR – CHI), Charles Tillman (CB – CHI), Marion Barber (RB – CHI), Sam Hurd (WR – CHI), Matt Forte (RB – CHI), Caleb Hanie (QB – CHI), Henry Melton (DL – CHI), Edwin Williams (C – CHI), Thaddeus Gibson (LB – CHI), Major Wright (S – CHI), Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears, Dec 18, 2011 12:00 PM CST

The Chicago Bears have released their Week 15 Injury Report:

Out

QB Jay Cutler
RB Matt Forte
WR Sam Hurd (released)

Questionable

DT Henry Melton
WR Devin Hester

Probable

CB Charles Tillman
G Edwin Williams
S Major Wright

The biggest news of the week has surrounded now-released WR Sam Hurd, who was arrested on federal drug charges on Thursday. The Bears used Hurd mostly on special teams, and have since promoted DE Thaddeus Gibson.

The Bears are also struggling on the injury front, with DT Henry Melton (7.0 sacks) and Devin Hester (league-leading 18.5 yards per punt return) questionable against the Seattle Seahawks. The Chicago offense will also be turning once again to backups QB Caleb Hanie and RB Marion Barber to lead the offense with Cutler and Forte still on the mend.

Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the Chicago Bears be sure to visit Windy City Gridiron. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Read More: Anthony Adams (DT – CHI), Jay Cutler (QB – CHI), Matt Forte (RB – CHI), Major Wright (S – CHI), Nathan Enderle (QB – CHI), Ricky Henry (G – CHI), Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos

A Chicago Bears season that was proving to be as promising as any in recent memory has proven to be quite far from that, as injuries have piled up and left the Bears with a fraction of the team that began to look like a possible Super Bowl contender. First there was the potentially season-ending injury to Jay Cutler, but things were only compounded by the injuries that fellow starters Matt Forte and Major Wright suffered last week against Kansas City. Michael C. Wright of ESPN Chicago has the full list of inactives for the Denver game, which is shown below:

- QB Jay Cutler

- RB Matt Forte

- S Major Wright

- QB Nathan Enderle

- OG Ricky Henry

- TE Andre Smith

- DT Anthony Adams

The Bears aren’t missing that many players, but the ones that are missing are integral to the team. Cutler was the crux of the Bears offense as a near-elite quarterback, and the team can’t turn to Forte to handle some of that workload now that he’s on the mend, as well. 

For updates on this Week 14 matchup, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For more on this week’s game, visit Bears blog, Windy City Gridiron, and Broncos blog, Mile High Report. Head over to SB Nation NFL for more from around the league.

No Jay Cutler. No Matt Cassel, either.

Star power at quarterback may be lacking when the Chicago Bears host the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. Intrigue won’t be hard to find, though.

Cutler is out indefinitely with a broken right thumb. A right hand injury ended Cassel’s season early. And that means both teams have big questions at quarterback.

Caleb Hanie is trying to keep the Bears (7-4) in contention with Cutler sidelined.

The Chiefs (4-7) have another issue at quarterback.

Coach Todd Haley said Tyler Palko’s the man — for now — even though Kyle Orton is in the fold. But how long will that last before Orton starts taking snaps against his former team?

“Tyler is our starter,” Haley said. “We got to get Kyle ready to play. He might have to play, and he might not. That’s the situation, right now, as we speak.”

Palko said, “I’m the starter, from what Todd has told me. And let everything else play out, as it may.”

So far, things haven’t played out well for Palko.

The Chiefs were forced to turn to the journeyman backup when Cassel suffered a season-ending hand injury, and he threw three interceptions in a 34-3 loss at New England two weeks ago. Things were no better in a 13-9 loss to Pittsburgh.

He fumbled away a snap and threw two picks in a span of three plays in the first half and got intercepted a third time in the closing minutes after leading the Chiefs down the field, sealing Kansas City’s fourth straight loss and second in a row without a touchdown.

That did nothing to quiet the calls for Orton, who was claimed off waivers from Denver last week. He arrived in Kansas City that Friday, leaving him no time to get ready for the Steelers game, but he’s had a week now.

Haley said Palko would get about 60 percent of the repetitions with the first-team offense this week, with Orton taking the rest.

If he gets the call against the Bears, the game could become even more interesting. Not only did Orton spend his first four years with Chicago before being traded to Denver for Cutler in 2009, the Bears also put in a claim for him. The Chiefs got him because they have a worse record.

“It’s my job to get ready as fast as I can,” Orton said. “I don’t make the decision on whether I play or not, I just go out on the practice field and perform whenever my coaches tell me to perform.”

For Chicago, there’s no question who will be lining up at quarterback.

Hanie is the man, and he probably will be with Cutler out as long as he doesn’t have some sort of meltdown.

“We’ve just got to be really careful what kind of situations we put him in,” Cutler said. “(Offensive coordinator Mike Martz has) got to be careful with that. We don’t really know what Caleb’s comfortable with; Caleb doesn’t know what he’s comfortable with. He hasn’t run a lot of these plays, hasn’t run a lot of this stuff in the offense in game situations, in high-pressure situations. We’ve just got to take care of him.”

The Bears believe they have enough to get by with stars like Julius Peppers, Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs and Devin Hester. Matt Forte still is enjoying a career year with 985 yards even if he hasn’t run for more than 64 in the past three games.

Of course, Cutler’s injury is a big blow.

He hopes to return this season but isn’t making any guarantees. He had three screws and two pins surgically inserted to repair an injury he suffered trying to help make a tackle following an interception in the fourth quarter against San Diego two weeks ago.

He finished the game, but with Cutler out, the Bears had no choice but to turn to Hanie last week. In his first start, the results were mixed in a 25-20 loss to Oakland.

He threw three interceptions in the first half and botched a spike, resulting in an intentional grounding penalty that wiped the final seconds off the clock, as Chicago’s five-game win streak came to an end. He also threw for 254 yards and two TDs while running for 50 yards.

Hanie acknowledged he was jittery in the early going, but insisted that won’t be an issue this week.

“Looking back, there were a lot of great things that came out of the game, so I feel a lot more confident now watching the film, seeing that it wasn’t as bad as it might have felt after the game,” Hanie said.

Martz said he simplified things early on, and that might have contributed to the problems.

“You limit him, and on certain coverages it’s hard to get guys open,” Martz said. “So you’ve got to give him the full scope of things because he can see things and react to it, and make those throws. You’ve just got to get him going with it. When he did that, he played well. So that was very encouraging.”

LAKE FOREST, Ill. – No Jay Cutler. No Matt Cassel, either.

Star power at quarterback may be lacking when the Chicago Bears play host to the Kansas City Chiefs today. Intrigue won’t be hard to find, though.

Cutler is out indefinitely with a broken right thumb. A right hand injury ended Cassel’s season early. And that means both teams have big questions at quarterback.

Caleb Hanie is trying to keep the Bears (7-4) in contention with Cutler sidelined.

The Chiefs (4-7) have another issue at quarterback.

Coach Todd Haley said Tyler Palko’s the man – for now – even though Kyle Orton is in the fold. But how long will that last before Orton starts taking snaps against his former team?

“Tyler is our starter,” Haley said. “We got to get Kyle ready to play. He might have to play, and he might not. That’s the situation, right now, as we speak.”

Palko said, “I’m the starter, from what Todd has told me. And let everything else play out as it may.”

For Chicago, there’s no question who will be lining up at quarterback.

Hanie is the man, and he probably will be with Cutler out as long as he doesn’t have some sort of meltdown.

“We’ve just got to be really careful what kind of situations we put him in,” Cutler said. “(Offensive coordinator Mike Martz has) got to be careful with that. We don’t really know what Caleb’s comfortable with; Caleb doesn’t know what he’s comfortable with. He hasn’t run a lot of these plays, hasn’t run a lot of this stuff in the offense in game situations, in high-pressure situations. We’ve just got to take care of him.”

The Bears believe they have enough to get by with stars like Julius Peppers, Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs and Devin Hester. Matt Forte still is enjoying a career year with 985 yards even if he hasn’t run for more than 64 in the past three games.

Of course, Cutler’s injury is a big blow.

He hopes to return this season but isn’t making any guarantees.

In a loss to Oakland last week, Hanie threw three interceptions in the first half and botched a spike, resulting in an intentional grounding penalty that wiped the final seconds off the clock, as Chicago’s five-game win streak came to an end. He also threw for 254 yards and two TDs.

“Looking back, there were a lot of great things that came out of the game, so I feel a lot more confident now watching the film, seeing that it wasn’t as bad as it might have felt after the game,” Hanie said.

Martz said he simplified things early, which might have contributed to the problems.

“You limit him, and on certain coverages it’s hard to get guys open,” Martz said. “So you’ve got to give him the full scope of things because he can see things and react to it, and make those throws. You’ve just got to get him going with it. When he did that, he played well. So that was very encouraging.”

Lake Forest, Ill. — No Jay Cutler. No Matt Cassel, either.

Star power at quarterback may be lacking when the Chicago Bears host the Kansas City Chiefs today. Intrigue won’t be hard to find, though.

Cutler is out indefinitely with a broken right thumb. A right hand injury ended Cassel’s season early. And that means both teams have big questions at quarterback.

Caleb Hanie is trying to keep the Bears (7-4) in contention with Cutler sidelined.

The Chiefs (4-7) have another issue at quarterback.

Coach Todd Haley said Tyler Palko’s the man — for now — even though Kyle Orton is in the fold. But how long will that last before Orton starts taking snaps against his former team?

“Tyler is our starter,” Haley said. “We got to get Kyle ready to play. He might have to play, and he might not. That’s the situation, right now, as we speak.”

Palko said, “I’m the starter, from what Todd has told me. And let everything else play out, as it may.”

So far, things haven’t played out well for Palko.

The Chiefs were forced to turn to the journeyman backup when Cassel suffered a season-ending hand injury, and he threw three interceptions in a 34-3 loss at New England two weeks ago. Things were no better in a 13-9 loss to Pittsburgh.

He fumbled away a snap and threw two picks in a span of three plays in the first half and got intercepted a third time in the closing minutes after leading the Chiefs down the field, sealing Kansas City’s fourth straight loss and second in a row without a touchdown.

That did nothing to quiet the calls for Orton, who was claimed off waivers from Denver last week. He arrived in Kansas City that Friday, leaving him no time to get ready for the Steelers game, but he’s had a week now.

Haley said Palko would get about 60 percent of the repetitions with the first-team offense this week, with Orton taking the rest.

If he gets the call against the Bears, the game could become even more interesting. Not only did Orton spend his first four years with Chicago before being traded to Denver for Cutler in 2009, the Bears also put in a claim for him. The Chiefs got him because they have a worse record.

“It’s my job to get ready as fast as I can,” Orton said. “I don’t make the decision on whether I play or not, I just go out on the practice field and perform whenever my coaches tell me to perform.”

For Chicago, there’s no question who will be lining up at quarterback.

Hanie is the man, and he probably will be with Cutler out as long as he doesn’t have some sort of meltdown.

“We’ve just got to be really careful what kind of situations we put him in,” Cutler said.

Copyright 2011 The

Associated Press.

All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
We strive to uphold our values for every story published.

By Bradley Woodrum

– Newsdesk contributor

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Dec 2, 2011 – The Chicago Bears announced early Friday afternoon that they had come to terms with wide receiver Earl Bennett on a 4-year contract extension. A fellow graduate of Vanderbilt University, Jay Cutler has often displayed strong chemistry with Bennett, making him his favorite possession target when healthy.

Bennett currently has over 250 receiving yards a one touchdown reception in 2011, despite missing five games with an injury earlier this year. He has also been one of the Bears’ most consistent targets, averaging 15.3 yards per catch — good for second best on the Bears behind only Johnny Knox (22.2).

The Bears initially acquired Earl Bennett in the 2008 NFL Draft with the 7th pick of the 3rd round. Bennett has over 1,500 receiving yards and a total of 6 TDs in his 4-year NFL career. The extension should keep Bennett with the Bears through the 2015 NFL season.

For more on the Chicago Bears, check out Windy City Gridiron, an SB Nation blog dedicated to the Monster of the Midway. For more updates around the NFL, head to SB Nation Pro Football.

Read More: earl bennett extension, Jay Cutler (QB – CHI), Earl Bennett (WR – CHI), Johnny Knox (WR – CHI), Chicago Bears

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The Bears hope he will return this year. So does Cutler, but he wasn’t making any guarantees.

“I’ve got to be smart about it,” he said. “Obviously, I’d want to play next week if they’d allow me. I don’t think that’s going to be in the cards. It could be I’m done for the season. I just have to be smart about it and realize that there is a long-term picture here. At the same point, I want to be out there and my teammates want me to be out there.”

Cutler was injured trying to help tackle Antoine Cason on an interception return in the fourth quarter of a 31-20 victory over the Chargers, Cutler had three screws and two pins surgically inserted into his throwing hand three days later in Vail, Colo.

He said the thumb is “structurally sound” and the screws will stay in. He said the pins come out after three to 10 weeks.

Cutler also said he did not suffer any ligament damage, but did hyperextend and dislocate it. He has started rehabilitation and is trying to get the swelling to go down, but he expects to lose some flexibility in his thumb.

He’s not sure when he’ll be able to start throwing, let alone play.

“We’ll have to take it week by week, take some X-rays and CT scans the next couple weeks and see if the bone’s healing like it should be,” Cutler said. “I don’t want to put a real number on it because I just don’t know.”

With Cutler sidelined, the Bears turned to Caleb Hanie last week and the results were mixed.

Making his first start, Hanie threw three interceptions in the first half and flubbed a spike in the closing seconds of a 25-20 loss at Oakland, resulting in a game-ending intentional grounding call. He also did some things reasonably well, throwing for 254 yards and two touchdowns while running for 50 yards on five attempts, but Chicago (7-4) saw a five-game win streak end.

With stars Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher anchoring the defense and Devin Hester leading one of the top special-teams units, the Bears believe they have enough to get by. It would help if they had their starting quarterback, though.

A lot.

Cutler actually finished that game against San Diego and wound up with 286 yards passing. He also threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, but the only play anyone was talking about afterward was this one.

With an 11-point lead against San Diego and the ball on the Chargers 30, Cutler was trying to hit Johnny Knox, but the receiver slipped. Cason picked off the ball at the 20 and returned it 64 yards before being pushed out of bounds by Matt Forte at the Bears 16.

Cutler helped prevent a touchdown on the return, but paid a heavy price. He raced over and got knocked to the ground by linebacker Donald Butler as he pushed Cason with his right hand, which smacked the turf as he fell. Major Wright intercepted Philip Rivers’ throw in the end zone three plays later, and the Bears ran 71/2 minutes off the clock on the next possession, with Cutler completing two passes on the drive, to Matt Spaeth and Forte.

Cutler did not realize at first that he was injured.

“I was (ticked) at Johnny about the pick so coming off the field I didn’t really notice,” said Cutler, who thought Butler grabbed his facemask. “I was more worried about talking to him in a calm manner. After I settled down and went back on the field, I knew there was something definitely wrong and it was kind of serious. I didn’t really imagine I’d have to have surgery.”

He said it was “really uncomfortable” but kept playing. He informed trainers something was wrong during a timeout on the Bears’ long possession but told them, “We’ll just have to deal with it after the game.”

And beyond.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Kristin Cavallari revealed Wednesday that she and Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler are indeed engaged — for a second time.

“This time its official..Jay and I are engaged again ” she tweeted to fans.

The pair are set to resume wedding planning after they split up in July.

The former “Hills” star began dating Cutler, 28, in the fall of 2010, and the lovebirds got engaged — for the first time — in April while on vacation in Mexico.

But their romance hit the rocks over the summer and they called off the wedding and returned wedding gifts to friends in August.

However, hints of a rekindled love came in September, when Cutler was seen supporting his ex-fiancée as she competed on Season 13 of “Dancing with the Stars.”

The two have also exchanged flirtatious tweets and have not been shy about showing affection in public.

Tabloid reports emerged Nov. 21 claiming that the engagement was back on but Cavallari, 24, adamantly denied the tale.

“New week new rumor. I’m not engaged u guys,” she tweeted to fans.

OAKLAND, Calif. – If there’s any team that knows what the Chicago Bears are going through after losing starting quarterback Jay Cutler to a broken thumb, it might be the Oakland Raiders.

It was just last month that Oakland’s promising season hit a speed bump when starter Jason Campbell broke his collarbone. The Raiders lost back-to-back games as they adjusted to new quarterback Carson Palmer before responding with wins the past two weeks as Palmer found his rhythm.

The Bears (7-3) are now in a similar predicament heading into Sunday’s game in Oakland against the Raiders (6-4), with backup Caleb Hanie set to get his first career start one week after Cutler broke his thumb trying to make a tackle on an interception return.

The emotions in Chicago are quite familiar to the Raiders. The initial shock followed by the understanding that the team must rally behind the new quarterback or otherwise the entire season would go to waste.

“The QB is the leader,” Raiders defensive tackle Tommy Kelly said. “He’s the face of the team. When you lose a good one, and everything’s going like the Bears have had, winning five in a row, it’s a shock wave. But the dude they’ve got backing up played last year in the NFC championship game. He didn’t play all year last year and he came right in and picked it up. You can’t go in thinking there’s going to be a big drop-off. You just have to take care of business.”

While Hanie’s last start was for Colorado State against Wyoming four years ago and he has not even thrown a pass all season, his performance in last season’s NFC title game against Green Bay opened eyes in Oakland, and among his own teammates.

After Cutler went down with a knee injury and Todd Collins was ineffective in two series, Hanie came into the game with the Bears trailing the Packers 14-0 late in the third quarter. He led the Bears to a touchdown on his first drive, threw an interception that was returned for a score later in the fourth quarter and then threw a TD pass to cut the deficit to 21-14.

Hanie then drove Chicago into Green Bay territory before throwing an interception in the final minute to send the Packers to the Super Bowl. He finished that game 13 for 20 for 153 yards with one TD and two interceptions on a huge stage with no preparation.

The Bears hope that makes this week’s task a little bit easier.

“That helped him a lot. This week he knew he was the guy right away. He’s able to take all the reps in practice to really get himself ready to play the best possible game he can,” coach Lovie Smith said. “He’s not a rookie around here. Caleb’s been around here for a while. Our players all know him, they have confidence in him. Outside it’s a big story, but on the inside we’re just carrying on. It’s always next guy up.”

When the Raiders lost Campbell on Oct. 16 in a win against Cleveland, the next man up was Kyle Boller. But they quickly decided they needed an upgrade and immediately traded a 2012 first-round pick and conditional 2013 second-rounder to Cincinnati for Palmer.

The risk did not pay off immediately. Boller and Palmer combined to throw six interceptions as Oakland lost its first game without Palmer to Kansas City. Palmer threw three more interceptions the following game in a loss to Denver.

But he has bounced back the past two games, going 31 for 43 for 463 yards with three touchdowns and one interception for a passer rating of 120.6 as the Raiders have won two straight to take over first place in the AFC West.

“That’s why I went and got the guy,” coach Hue Jackson said. “He’s a tremendous football player. He’s growing each and every day. The sky’s the limit. What he has to do is just keep working. It’s a testament to him. All of a sudden you’ve played four games now and your body, you go from the couch to playing, and at some point in time you’re looking for him to slow down and hit a wall, but not this guy. He keeps working and pushes right through it and on he goes.”

The Bears are putting their hopes in Hanie’s hands until Cutler returns, possibly before the end of the regular season. They reportedly made a waiver claim on Kyle Orton, who was claimed by Kansas City, and signed Josh McCown as a backup.

But if they are going to make it back to the post-season, Hanie will be the quarterback to get them there. He has plenty of help with running back Matt Forte, who leads the league with 1,391 yards from scrimmage, big-play returner Devin Hester and a defence that is tied for second in takeaways with 23.

“We lost our leader for a few weeks here so we’ve got to pick it up a little bit and everyone’s got to try and do more if that’s even possible,” linebacker Brian Urlacher said. “It’s hard to do that in the NFL and we’ve just got to try and find a way to make some more plays.”

Now that shock has settled for Chicago Bears nation from the loss of Jay Cutler(notes), we can start to look around with a clearer head. That clairvoyance should bring us to the following conclusion: the Bears might actually survive this major setback. Not only might they survive it, they’ll continue to thrive.

Jay Cutler is a strong quarterback. I will attest to being a fan of his during his entire Bears tenure. Yes, the entire time. All the talk that came out about him after his exit during the NFC Championship game was totally ludicrous. I’ll stay on topic, though. I don’t mean to suggest that the Bears can simply insert another quarterback —Caleb Hanie(notes) in this case—and not miss a beat. No, I would imagine there will be adjusting going on, but I don’t think it will overly affect the win-loss column for Chicago.

Firstly, the Bears are suddenly a genuinely well-rounded team—and have been for the last month plus. They run the ball, they can pass, have tremendous special teams, and can play good, sometimes great, defense. Jay Cutler is important to this team, but he’s far from the only important piece.

Second, Caleb Hanie has given us a reason to not despair. Not only will he not be the end-all-be-all of the offense, but he’s already shown capable ability to run an offense. He’s always been a player that you wouldn’t ever consider starting over Jay Cutler, but has shown enough promise that you’d be lying to say you weren’t at least a little curious to see what he can do. We’re about to see.

Lastly, the Bears have a major schedule advantage the last handful of weeks. They have Oakland, Denver, Kansas City, Seattle, Green Bay, and Minnesota remaining on the schedule. The Bears have enough talent outside of Jay Cutler that they should still be in firm control of their own destiny against the mentioned batch of teams.

Jay Cutler will be missed. I don’t doubt that. But with the rest of the team playing well, Hanie’s role can be crafted to the Bears liking. If that’s the case, I think the wins will take care of themselves.

Brian is a lifelong Chicago Bears fan, having lived in Illinois his entire life and having followed the National Football League throughout.

Sources

Cutler Out 6 to 8 weeks.

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Read More: Carson Palmer (QB – OAK), Jay Cutler (QB – CHI), Michael Bush (RB – OAK), Caleb Hanie (QB – CHI), Denarius Moore (WR – OAK), Chicago Bears, Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders welcome the Chicago Bears to town on Sunday in a huge game for Oakland. The Raiders hold a one-game lead over the Denver Broncos in the AFC West and will look to handle their business against a hot Bears squad that just lost its starting quarterback indefinitely.

The loss of Jay Cutler and the insertion of Caleb Hanie into the starting lineup makes the Raiders defense an intriguing play this weekend. Matt Forte will be the focal point of the offense, but without Cutler, the Raiders might be more inclined to stack the box and make Hanie beat them. This could open the door for sacks and turnovers, which are always a good thing.

Carson Palmer remains a big question mark as he was relegated to a lot of handoff duty against the Vikings. He was 17-of-23 but he did not have the big plays like we saw from him against the San Diego Chargers. This could repeat itself against the Chicago Bears, but there is still some upside for Palmer. The Bears defense could also elect to stuff the box against a hot Michael Bush, which could open up Denarius Moore deep.

Palmer is a risky play given the Raiders rushing attack, but he has shown some serious upside when they open up the passing game. He is likely scooped up in most leagues, but if he is sitting around, he is worth a grab.

Caleb Hanie, left, with Jay Cutler at training camp this year, is a former CSU quarterback awaiting his first NFL start with the Bears. Cutler has a broken thumb, so Hanie will be a starter Sunday against the Raiders.
(Jonathan Daniel, Getty Images
)

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — The Bears are confident quarterback Jay Cutler will return this season from a broken thumb on his right (throwing) hand, so there was a glimmer of hope to go with the big chill that just blew through Chicago.

Even so, this is a major blow for the red-hot Bears.

Cutler needs surgery and will be out “for an extended time,” coach Lovie Smith said Monday. He would not say when the operation will take place, just “hopefully fairly quick,” and provided few details about the specific nature of the injury.

Smith did make one thing clear, though.

“Is it a season-ending injury? No,” he said. “From what I’ve been told right now, we can expect him back at the end of the regular season.”

The regular-season finale is Jan. 1 at Minnesota.

With Cutler out, the Bears will turn to backup and former Colorado State standout Caleb Hanie against Oakland this weekend. They also will look to bring in a veteran quarterback.

Hanie has thrown just 14 regular-season passes in four years. He made some plays in the NFC championship game against Green Bay last season after Cutler was injured and Todd Collins struggled, helping keep the Bears in it, but Chicago ultimately lost to the Packers.

Cutler was injured trying to help tackle Antoine Cason on an interception return in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 31-20 victory over the San Diego Chargers, and Smith was unaware of the extent of the injury until after the game.

Cutler stayed in and finished with 286 yards passing. He threw for two touchdowns and ran for another TD while leading the Bears (7-3) to their fifth straight win, but his injury is a hit for a team that made a big leap into contention in the NFC.

“It’s devastating,” linebacker Brian Urlacher said. “It’s horrible, and I felt worse for him than I did for us. It stinks for us because he’s having such a great year. He’s our leader. He’s the guy we turn to for pretty much everything.”

The Bears travel to play the Broncos on Dec. 11.

Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has a broken thumb on his right, throwing hand and will undergo surgery, a major blow for a team contending for a playoff spot in the NFC.

Coach Lovie Smith said Cutler will be out “for an extended time” but expects to get him back this season. He would not say when the surgery would take place, just “hopefully fairly quick” and provided few details about the specific nature of the injury.

He did make one thing clear, though.

“Is it a season-ending injury? No,” Smith said Monday. “From what I’ve been told right now, we can expect him back at the end of the regular season.”

The regular-season finale is Jan. 1 at Minnesota.

With Cutler out, the Bears will turn to backup Caleb Hanie against Oakland this weekend. They’ll also look to bring in a veteran quarterback.

Hanie has thrown just 14 regular-season passes in four years. He made some plays in the NFC championship game against Green Bay last season after Cutler was injured and Todd Collins struggled, helping keep the Bears in it, but Chicago ultimately lost to the Packers.

Cutler was injured trying to help tackle Antoine Cason on an interception return in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s 31-20 victory over the San Diego Chargers.

Story continues below

Cutler stayed in and finished with 286 yards passing. He threw for two touchdowns and ran for another while leading the Bears (7-3) to their fifth straight win.

Around the league

Jets • Coach Rex Ryan was fined $75,000 by the NFL on Monday for using profanity while angrily responding to a fan at halftime of New York’s 37-16 loss to New England on Nov. 13. Ryan received an official notice from Commissioner Roger Goodell in the morning, and said he will not appeal the penalty.

“The commissioner’s got a tough enough job,” Ryan said. “I’m an NFL lifer. I know I represent the NFL and I know I represent the Jets, so I’m accountable for my actions.”

Ryan spoke to Goodell a few days ago to discuss the matter, and to apologize to him.

Vikings • Running back Adrian Peterson has a high ankle sprain that will put him in a walking boot, leaving his availability for Sunday’s game at Atlanta question. Peterson’s left ankle rolled hard late in the first quarter on Sunday against Oakland while he was tackled at the end of a run. He didn’t return. Peterson has missed three games in his five-year NFL career.

49ers • Safety Dashon Goldson insists his fight with Arizona wide receiver Early Doucet was a one-time transgression and said he addressed his teammates and coaches after Sunday’s 23-7 win over the Cardinals regarding the mistake. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an email that the league doesn’t plan to suspend Goldson, who will get word on a potential fine when they are handed down Friday.

Chiefs • Kansas City placed quarterback Matt Cassel on injured reserve with a hand injury, ending his season. Cassel had surgery on his right throwing hand Nov. 14 after being injured one day earlier in a 17-10 loss to Denver. He was placed on IR shortly before Monday night’s game against the New England Patriots. His absence made Tyler Palko, who had thrown 13 NFL passes, the first-stringer with rookie Ricky Stanzi the backup.